Over Me Now
by Heart Like Memphis
Summary: 'Now that your world's crashing down, are you over me now' St Berry. Season 2.
1. Chapter 1

Jesse St. James was not amused. He was furious actually. Furious, embarrassed, disgusted, every negative word you could think of. Why might you ask? Simple. He was being forced to attend another year of high school.

He felt like an idiot. Jesse had planned to go to the University of California in Los Angeles however he lost his scholarship because of his stupid mistake in transferring back and forth between Carmel and McKinley High.

Okay, it wasn't a stupid mistake. He had went to be with Rachel. There was nothing stupid about that. However the fact that he had lost his credits after returning to Carmel, now that was stupid!

His parents weren't pleased with this. Jesse's parents had never been completely thrilled with his passion for music and performing. They had always wanted him to be something productive. To follow in their footsteps by being doctors. Jesse would watch the odd medical show but he had no intention in joining the field. Because of this he knew that he'd have to try his hardest to obtain another scholarship. If he didn't then he didn't stand a chance because he knew his parents wouldn't help.

To make matters worse Jesse would have to attend McKinley High. Shelby had left Carmel to start her family with Beth. He had no reason to go back there. As much as he loved Vocal Adrenaline he couldn't make himself stay with them. Not with this embarrassment he held on his shoulders. This is the second time in his life that he had failed. The feeling of failure didn't sit well with Jesse St. James. It wasn't natural.

Rachel Berry loved the first day of school. Today she was even more excited than usual. Today she would be entering the new school year with her usual positivity along with her boyfriend, Finn Hudson. Rachel and Finn had spent the summer dating. She was completely thrilled that their romance was still going strong. She had always known that it was more than a summer fling. It was true love.

Jacob Ben Israel was going around interviewing the glee clubbers for his website. He started off by interviewing their power couple, Finn and Rachel.

"Rachel, how do you respond to rumors you're incredibly difficult to work with?" Jacob questioned.

Finn spoke first, "Well as her boyfriend I can answer that."

"We've been dating all summer." Rachel smiled widely at the camera.

"Rachel's what you'd call a controlist." Finn continued.

"I'm controlling. Controlist isn't a word. I'm controlling. Performing is my life and yes do I have opinions about it? Does my need to constantly express those opinions annoy my fellow glee clubbers?"

"Yes."

Rachel frowned slightly.

"That was out loud wasn't it.." Finn ended awkwardly.

Jacob gave his camera guy a look before leaving Rachel and Finn to go off in search of the other members. During his search he spotted a familiar face. "Jesse St. James? Why are you here and not in LA? Didn't you graduate last year?"

Jesse raised his hand to block the camera that was being shoved in his face. "No comment." He slammed his locker shut and walked off giving Jacob only one option, following him.

"Is it true that you had a sing off with Finn Hudson? Did you actually egg Rachel Berry? Do you think Vocal Adrenaline wore too much pink during their regionals performance?"

Jesse groaned as the questions poured out of Jacob's mouth. "I said no comment." He said angrily, "Now leave me alone. Go cut your hair."

Finally Jesse's luck was turning around. Tina and Mike were spotted walking through the hallway together. They immediately took the focus off of him. Jacob was on their heels in a matter of seconds.

Jesse rushed into his homeroom class. Biology. He sighed as he took a seat at an unoccupied desk. Let the horror begin.

For once in his life Jesse was trying to fly under the radar. His senior classes kept him out of New Directions' range and when he spent as little time in the halls as he could. He didn't want to run into her. He couldn't bare to see her after how things ended. If she heard about what happened to him, she'd probably just laugh in his face now.

Jesse had been sitting outside eating his lunch when he heard the music start. Next thing he knew the members of New Directions were out singing Empire State of Mind while clad in black NYC shirts with either a hat or a pair of sunglasses.

He, like the rest of the student body, wasn't impressed by their performance although he had to admit, the girls looked pretty adorable.

Another day had passed. Jesse stood at his locker, he needed to get out his history books and then head to class. It was then when he blew his cover.

Quinn and Santana were fighting. Normally Jesse could care less except this fight was getting too violent for his taste. Santana threw Quinn to the floor and it was at that moment when he jumped in to stop them.

"Enough!" He demanded, stepping between them. "Aren't you guys supposed to be a family or something?"

"Oh please, she has a family, she's a motherrrr."

"WALK AWAY AND TIGHTEN UP YOUR PONY BEFORE YOU GET TO CLASS!" Quinn shouted as Jesse held her back.

Santana followed Quinn's demand as she broke through the crowd.

Quinn breathed heavily, "Let go of me!" She pushed him away but when she realized that it had been Jesse holding her she slapped him in the face before storming off.

And suddenly he was noticed.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Notes: **Hey guys! I'm glad that this story is getting positive reviews! I felt that a season St. Berry story was needed because I really miss them! I don't know, Glee just doesn't seem the same without Jon but that's just my opinion lol. Anyway, I plan on using the actual episodes as templates so I'm really sorry if anyone is against spoilers. I hate that I might be spoiling things but I want to make it seem like this story is what it'd be like if Jesse was actually there. Enough ramblings, I hope you enjoy this chapter and keep sending reviews my way! x] Btw, this is part one of two for the britney episode..

* * *

Mondays. Oh how Jesse loathed them. The beginning of the week was never fun. Getting up early after having a nice relaxing weekend. It ruined things! He made it through his first two classes and he was dragging his feet through the hallway when suddenly he heard his name.

"St. James, come here." Quinn motioned at him to come over to her locker.

Confused, Jesse wandered over to her. "What do you want? Is it already time to slap the other side of my face?" He asked with a monotone.

"If you keep up that attitude then maybe." Her eyes focused on her locker, she began to search through it, "Actually, I wanted to apologize for that." She added sheepishly, "I wasn't really thinking, I was just so angry at Santana."

"I'm aware, I remember the yelling."

"It wasn't exactly my finest moment."

"I agree."

Quinn pulled out a binder, she looked at it and then at the boy standing next to her.

Jesse cocked an eyebrow.

She turned back toward her locker.

Finding another text book this time she held them out hoping that Jesse would take them. He did. Jesse held the two books and Quinn added a small pencil case to the stack. "Thanks, I can take them back now." She stated after shutting her locker.

"It's fine, I'll hold them. I can walk you to class."

"Did you miss me this summer?" She asked as they started walking together. Quinn leading slightly.

Jesse shook his head, "Not at all."

"Liar."

He smirked, "How about you? Did you miss me?"

"Up until a few seconds ago." Quinn grinned, "I forgot how obnoxious you could be."

He rolled his eyes.

"Jess, why exactly are you here?" Quinn asked quietly as she stopped in front of her classroom.

"I lost a few credits due to the transfers last year, didn't have enough to graduate." He mumbled.

"So you chose McKinley over Carmel?"

"I can't stand the thought of going back. Everyone there would laugh. I left with false accomplishments. They all think that I'm off in LA, well all except the principal." He sighed, "Plus Shelby's gone, Vocal Adrenaline without her just won't be the same."

"Vocal Adrenaline won't be the same without you either." She paused, "I'm really sorry Jesse."

"You have nothing to be sorry about. None of this is your fault."

"But just when my life's turning around yours is falling apart."

"That may be true but Jesse St. James doesn't give up easily" He flashed that oh so familiar arrogant smile of his, "I'll figure something out."

Quinn's pout disappeared, "Oh, of course. Listen, you need to give me my books back so you can go get yours, if not you're going to be late for class!"

Jesse handed her the books, "I've got nothing to worry about. My free period is next."

"Aw, it's too bad that we don't have the same one again this year."

The boy nodded, "I agree, I'll miss your company in the auditorium."

"Well someone needs to go enjoy themselves, whatever you practice now, you'll just have to show me later."

"How about after school?"

"I have glee.." Her voice trailed off slightly.

"I can wait for you.."

The bell rang.

"Crap." Quinn muttered, "But yeah, I'll see you after glee. After school wor-"

Quinn was cut off by Jesse gently pushing her into her classroom. Startled by her sudden entrance in front of her classmates she glanced back at the senior who was smirking at her. He waved and walked off leaving her to apologize to the biology teacher.

* * *

The hallways were empty as Jesse made his way to the April Rhodes Civic Pavilion. Being back in high school was still disappointing and humiliating but suddenly it was seeming a tad bit better. Knowing that he had Quinn Fabray back in his life helped a lot. His friendship with Quinn had always been a secret, to be honest he was surprised about her public displays of it today. When Jesse transferred to McKinley last year he had been an outcast. His only friend was Rachel. That is until he spent some time with Quinn.

Quinn had walked in on him once during one of his free period practices. At first it was weird. Everyone in the glee club (minus Rachel) hated Jesse. He had assumed that she would too. However the two teenagers found out that they actually had quite a bit in common. Quinn had been the most popular girl in school, boys wanted her, girls wanted to be her. At Carmel, Jesse had received the same treatment. He had been the star of the school. With Quinn's pregnancy and Jesse's transfer they both lost their popularity.

Jesse admired Quinn. He admired how she was able to go on with her life and go through with having her baby. She was a strong girl. No matter how she was feeling she always tried to put on a brave face.

Quinn and Jesse spent the rest of Jesse's short time at McKinley hanging out during their free periods. Jesse would play piano, Quinn would work on her homework or simply listen. After the whole egging fiasco they didn't see much of each other. The odd text message but nothing more. He was happy that she wasn't holding a grudge against him because of that. He wondered if she understood.

Walking into the auditorium Jesse frowned, it wasn't as big or as bright as Carmel's but it would have to do. He sat down in front of the piano, gently his fingers brushed against the keys. He began to play a few different chords which soon changed to melodies as he became reacquainted with the instrument.

* * *

Rachel sulked through the empty hallways. It was her free period and today she was especially glad about that. Before the last bell her and Finn had, had a.. she didn't know what to call it. It wasn't technically a fight or an arguement but it hadn't been pleasant either. It all started with Finn bringing up football again. Ever since he was kicked off the team he had been moping around about it lately.

_"I'm just so not cool now."_

Rachel understood that football was a big part of Finn's life but she didn't understand why he only ranted about his popularity and not about actually missing the game.

And maybe she had been too honest with what she told him but was that so wrong? Honesty was important in relationships wasn't it? Maybe her way of telling Finn that him not being on the football team meant that there was a less chance of him running off with some cheerleader wasn't the best way to admit a fear, once again possibly too straight forward but she couldn't help herself. She really couldn't. She wasn't always the best at thinking before speaking or at holding her tongue. It wasn't her strong suit.

And wanting to be the only thing that made him happy might be selfish but it was all with good intentions. Besides, Finn wasn't in the clear either. Santana and Brittany made fun of her in the hallway and he didn't even try to defend her!

Although maybe she deserved that.

She sighed. It was decided, tonight she would make Finn a batch of her famous "I'm sorry." cookies. Until then she'd stop by the auditorium to let out a little steam.

Rachel was surprised to hear the piano already being played before she got there.

_'Hm, Brad is incredibly prepared today.' _She thought with a small smile. Strolling into the auditorium she halted with an expression of complete horror. Brad was not the piano player. It was Jesse. Without making any sounds she immediately rushed away before he could see her. Thankfully he had been too into the song to actually notice her.

Now there was a new question she wanted answered, what was he doing here?

* * *

Glee club had just finished, Quinn said her goodbyes before sneaking off to the auditorium. A smile took over her features when she saw Jesse sitting on stage. "Hey!"

Jesse looked up from his homework which was scattered all over the stage, "How was glee club?"

"Weird actually." Quinn stated, "By the way, who's Michael Bolton?"

Jesse got up from his work and returned to the piano. He started to play _How Am I Supposed to Live Without You_.

_"I could hardly believe it when I heard the news today I had to come and get it straight from you.." _he sang but then stopped wondering if she would recognize the beginning. Judging by the blank expression he tried again.

"_Tell me how am I supposed to live without you now that I've been lovin' you so long? How am I supposed to live without you? How am I supposed to carry on, when all that I've been livin' for is gone"_

Still nothing.

"You sad, uneducated child." Jesse grinned teasingly, "Okay, do you know the Sidekicks commercial?"

"The one with the sad salt shaker?" Quinn asked, finally putting the pieces together.

"Yes!"

"Aw, that commercial is sad! Especially when Salty starts crying."

"But.." Jesse coaxed her on.

"But apparently Michael Bolton sings the song used in it."

"Exactly." He left the piano again to go over and sit with Quinn, "So what was so weird about glee club today?"

"Well, for one I think Mr. Schue wants us to sing Michael Bolton.. but Kurt tried to save us by bringing up the fact that people want us to sing Britney Spears songs."

_"Oh baby, baby"_Jesse laughed, "I'm sure that'll be amusing."

"I don't know. Mr. Schue wasn't too thrilled with that. Neither was Brittany."

"Why?"

"Brittany's name is Brittany S'Pierce. Brittany Susan Pierce."

Jesse gave her a weird look, "You're kidding."

"I wish I was."

"Weird."

"I know."


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Notes: **Alright guys, here's part 2 of the Britney episode. Enjoy and please remember to leave some reviews!

* * *

During the next few days the glee clubbers met Emma's new boyfriend Dr. Carl Howell. This resulted in the students getting their teeth checked. Rachel was one of the few that needed to get some work done. While waiting for her turn she was deeply immersed in the reading of Britney Spears' unauthorized biography. Mr. Schuester came out of Carl's office. It was finally Rachel's turn. She walked into the small room. Rachel followed Carl's instructions, she took a seat and tried to relax. Soon enough she was out like a light.

_Hit me baby one more time_

Rachel blinked, "Is this real life?"

_Is this just fantasy._

She felt groggy and confused when she looked up at Dr. Howell. She had just had the weirdest dream while put under the anesthesia. In her dream it was like she was in the music video for Britney's Baby One More time. To make things weirder Jesse was there too. She figured that he was only there because she had seen him earlier in the week. It couldn't be that big of a deal, she was still singing the song to Finn, Jesse was simply a back up dancer.

Her subconscious must've been messing with her. Stupid anesthesia.

* * *

Just as the Britney dream had affected Brittany it had also affected Rachel. The next day at school she showed up wearing the school girl outfit from Baby One More Time. Strutting through the hallway Rachel smiled lightly as all eyes were on her.

Finn immediately rushed over to Rachel as soon as he saw her. He didn't even have time to admire the outfit, he wanted to cover her up so no one else could see her this way. "Hey take my hoodie you look cold."

"It's okay - wait, you mean you don't like my new look?"

"Don't you think it's a bit much? I mean I think that guy just broke up with his girlfriend over there just so he could stare at you."

"I'm just doing what you told me. Besides it's not like when I went all sad clown hooker and put on that rediculous grease cat suit. This is just like my regular look with the volume turned up"

Jesse was standing with Quinn beside his locker which happened to be near the hallway that Rachel had been walking through. She caught his eye right away. It took everything in him to keep his jaw from dropping like every other guy in the school. If it hadn't been for Shelby's show face training he'd probably look just as dumb as they did.

"I've forgotten how much I love Britney Spears." He mumbled causing Quinn to turn her head to see what had caught his attention.

At this point Finn and Rachel were talking, Finn didn't seem happy.

"Oh Baby you can hit me as many times as you want as long as you've got that on!" Some jock yelled loudly.

"Extremely objectifying yet I agree completely." Jesse's comment resulted in Quinn smacking his arm.

"Don't say that." Quinn glared.

He held his hands up in defence, "What? I'm a guy, she's hot. Don't try to tell me that you weren't even the tiniest bit aroused by that."

She groaned at the sight of his smirk and smacked him again, "No, I wasn't! And neither should you! She has a boyfriend, remember?"

"Technical difficulties. What's your point?"

"Just don't be a jerk." Quinn locked gazes with him before carefully fixing his messed up collar, she glanced down at his outfit. Suddenly she was amused, he practically matched what Rachel was wearing. His outfit consisted of black dress pants, a white button up shirt with a dark grey v-neck sweater and a matching black blazer. The only thing that he was missing was a tie instead of the sweater.

"Me? Be a jerk? Never." Jesse grinned, "Besides, just because I think she looks good doesn't mean I still have feelings for her. Breaking up couples isn't my style either."

Jesse snuck one last peak at Rachel before leaving for lunch with Quinn.

"What do you want for her? I'll give you anything. I'll give you my house! I'll kill my parents and I'll give you my house!" Jacob asked Finn desperately. Finn groaned before walking away. Creepy kid.

* * *

Jesse was seated in the back row of the auditorium. His eyes were closed, headphones were in his ears. He felt serene, his brain only focused on the music that was coming from his iPod. Everything else was silence.

Quinn should be arriving soon considering glee club was almost over for the day. Jesse was thankful that they rarely used the auditorium, he thought it was weird but instead of practicing their songs there Mr Schuester had them work on everything in the choir room until they were ready to perfect things. It didn't bother Jesse though because the auditorium gave him a relaxing place to stay.

In the middle of a song change Jesse heard footsteps. He opened his eyes assuming to see Quinn but instead he was met with an unhappy looking Rachel.

"Hello Rachel." Jesse pulled the headphones out of his ears and stuffed his ipod into a pocket in his blazer.

The silence was broken. Rachel turned around to face him, he could tell that he had surprised her. "Jesse, I-" She stammered, "I didn't know you were here."

He stood up from his seat and walked over to her, "That why I sit at the back, people are too focused on what's in front of them they rarely notice the other details."

Shifting her gaze Rachel started to pull at her sweater, trying to cover up her exposed stomach.

"Cold?"

"A little." Rachel lied, glancing back at him.

"I'd offer you my coat but I'm sure you'd refuse it so what's the point right?" Jesse crossed his arms over his chest.

"Right."

Rachel didn't want to be near him. She could barely look at him right now and the thought of him seeing her in this outfit was worse than having Jacob see her. She started to walk away.

"My loneliness is killing me.."

"What?" Rachel interrupted quickly before he could continue.

Jesse smirked, "They're lyrics, you know, Baby One More Time. I'm assuming that Mr. Schue finally gave in and is letting New Directions sing Britney Spears songs. Correct?"

She shook her head, "Wrong. We're not allowed to sing her songs. Mr. Schue doesn't think she's a good role model."

"I can't say I disagree with him on that however her music is very important to today's culture." He mused, "But if you're not allowed to sing her songs then why are you dressed like that?"

"You'd think it was stupid."

"Try me."

Rachel looked at him, she really looked at him this time. She took in his appearance, his facial expressions, his everything.

Why was she still there talking to him? Why was she even considering to tell him why she was wearing this Britney outfit? She was supposed to be angry with him. And she was - just not right now.

"Santana and Brittany made fun of me the other day in the hallway.. It was about how I dressed. Then in glee club we kept talking about Britney and I thought maybe trying to dress like her would make me feel..well..pretty." She rambled quietly.

Jesse frowned and then moved closer to her, "You shouldn't feel like that Rachel. You're a beautiful girl. Your beauty isn't just based on clothing, it's based on everything about you. Your confidence, your voice, your personality, your smile. The clothing style don't matter, it's the girl that's wearing them, that's what matters." He told her while carefully buttoning up her sweater.

Rachel looked down at his hands as he buttoned the last button. His hands lingered for a few seconds before he finally backed away and walked out of the auditorium.

Rachel left a few minutes after him. She didn't unbutton the buttons.

* * *

It was time for the Homecoming pep assembly. Jesse was sitting next to Ms. Pillsbury in the stands with the rest of the student body. Normally Jesse could care less about assemblies but today's was different. The glee club would be performing at today's and Jesse was incredibly curious about this. The boy had begged Quinn to tell him what they'd be singing but she didn't budge. He hadn't been able to get anything out of her.

Principal Figgins gave a short speech before introducing New Directions. The curtains were pulled aside and Jesse, along with the rest of the students, quickly realized that they were singing Toxic. By the end of the performance Jesse and Emma were the only people still sitting in the bleachers. The students had started a sex riot. Sue pulled the fire alarm which just made things worse. This only caused Jesse and Emma to nearly be trampled by them all.

Quinn found Jesse standing outside. The teachers were all trying to calm down the students, so far it wasn't working well. "It's insane in there!"

"No kidding. It's insane out here too." Jesse added motioning to the riot that was taking place in the school yard too.

"I can't believe this happened."

"Me neither although I suppose it was pretty sexy."

Quinn grinned, "So you enjoyed yourself then?"

Jesse took her hat, "Let's just say that I'll never be able to look at a hat like this without thinking of this" He thrusted against the hat copying one of their dance moves.

Watching him do that move Quinn groaned, "Oh gosh, I can't believe I did that on stage."

"It was a wonderful thing. Except I think Jacob enjoyed it too much.. He made it disturbing. At one point I almost thought he was masturbating.. "

Jesse and Quinn both looked grossed out, "Ew. I just, I can't even think about that. Ew!" she exclaimed.

Rachel and Finn clung to each other as they were escorted out of the gym and pushed into the craziness that was going on outside. Finn was talking to her but Rachel wasn't paying attention. She was too busy focusing on Jesse thrusting against Quinn's hat. Rachel marched off, dragging Finn along before she was forced to watched what happened next.

* * *

"Listen, I know you said that you're not interested in Rachel anymore but I'm just reminding you again that she does have a boyfriend who loves her. I don't want to seem repetitive but after seeing the way you looked at her in her Britney outfit, I didn't want you to forget about Finn."

Jesse looked up from his homework, "And how do you know that?" He asked Quinn, "How do you know that he loves her?"

"Simple" Quinn said, "Rachel asked me to do her a favor. She wanted me to go flirt with Finn and see if he'd get back together with me."

"What did he say?"

"He chose Rachel over me."

Jesse stayed quiet, "I see.. Well good for them."

"Yes."

_

* * *

_

_"I said what you wanted me to, he shot me down. So congrats looks like he really loves you."_

_Quinn was about to walk away when Rachel spoke, "Thank you Quinn but I have another question."_

_"What?"_

_"Um, are you dating Jesse?"_

_Quinn scoffed at the idea, "Yeah right, you're the one who takes my leftovers remember? It's not the other way around."_

_Rachel frowned._

_Quinn realized that her comment might've been too harsh. "We're just friends okay? Nothing more."_

_Rachel nodded, still staying silent. Quinn looked at her for a few seconds but then walked off. Quinn wondered why Rachel would ask a question like that. Everyone knew that she loved Finn and now Quinn had given her proof that he loved her too. Was she considering Jesse again or was it merely the shock of having him back in her life? _

Quinn found out her answer when Rachel decided to serenade Finn in front of the class.

_You are the only exception.._


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Notes: **What I'm about to write isn't even in the same league as Grilled Cheesus. That episode was amazing. Seriously. Quite possibly one of my new favorites. The only thing missing was Jesse St. James! But yeah, thanks to those who keep reviewing. It means a lot :)

* * *

Jesse and Rachel were sitting alone in the auditorium. They had been sitting in silence for the majority of their free period. Neither teenager knew what to say. Earlier in the day they were told about Kurt's father being in the hospital. Everyone was so worried about the Hummels now. Jesse barely knew Kurt but even he was feeling upset about it. From what he had heard Kurt and his father had been through a lot together. Plus Kurt's mother had already passed away, Kurt didn't deserve to go through that type of pain again.

"Do you believe in God?" Rachel asked quietly, breaking the silence that had lasted for at least twenty minutes.

"I don't know if there's a heaven or if God even exists but I suppose it's nice to think that he does. It's nice to be able to believe that there's a better place after this life."

"That doesn't answer my question."

Jesse turned his head to look at her, "Honestly, I don't know if I do or not."

"Have your parents ever taken you to a church before?"

"To tell you the truth a church service is probably longer than the amount of time they actually spend with me during their visits." He said coldly.

When Rachel dated Jesse they rarely talked about his parents. They were no longer dating, sometimes she wondered if they were even friends, did she have the right to question him about this?

"Are they why you always wanted to come over to my house when we dated?" She asked cautiously.

"I had no one to bring you home to. Going to your house was a nice change. Your dads were always so kind. Being around a loving family made me feel welcome for once."

"I'm sure your parents love you."

"I try to tell myself that."

Silence took over the conversation again. Rachel usually tried to be honest but sometimes she found Jesse's honesty to be overwhelming. She wondered if he was that honest with everyone or if it was just her.

"Would you ever consider going to church?"

Jesse shrugged, "I doubt it. Going alone would be too weird. I'd feel so out of place."

"What if you weren't alone?"

They locked gazes, "Who'd go with me?" Jesse asked, hoping that her answer would be the one he wanted.

"Quinn. I'm sure that she'd be fine with the idea of you going to her church." Rachel paused, "But if you need more convincing.. I could go too.."

She had suggested what he wanted. "But you're Jewish. Wouldn't going to a Christian church be strange for you?"

"I'd be going for you." She realized how that sounded, "And for Kurt.. Um.. Besides, I'm perfectly confident with my faith so I don't see a problem with the idea." She added shifting her gaze slightly.

A small smile formed on Jesse's lips. The thought of going to a church made him nervous but if Rachel was going to be there he'd be willing to give it a try. Plus Quinn would be there too. He remembered her saying that a church could be like a family. Maybe this was what he needed.

* * *

Rachel was beginning to wonder if befriending Jesse was a good idea. Things with Finn were finally getting better again but her secret meetings with Jesse were making her feel guilty. Rachel had openly admitted to being nervous that Finn would hook up with a cheerleader now that he was on the football team again but what if Finn felt the same way with Rachel hanging out with Jesse? Not that she would hook up with him. She didn't want to. There was a part of Rachel that still wanted him to be eaten by a lion. Things were just getting so hectic that, that part of her was getting canceled out by the fact that she enjoyed having someone to talk to. Despite the cocky attitude he always hid behind the boy was good company. Whenever she was talking to Jesse she always felt like she could be honest and he wouldn't judge her. Maybe she needed to give Finn another chance to prove that he could be like that for her too.

* * *

After school Rachel went over to Finn's house.

"Finn, please, sit." She told him.

Finn hadn't been expecting Rachel. She seemed sad. "You're upset about Kurt's dad too?"

"Yes, but more importantly, let's discuss your new found love for Jesus and how it's affecting me. I want this relationship to go the distance but I need to know that when I'm twenty five and I've won a bunch of Tony's and I'm ready to have intercourse and babies that those babies will be raised in a certain way."

"You're not gonna have sex until you're twenty five?"

"I want my children to be raised in the Jewish faith. Both of my dad's peoples were slaves once. I need to know that my children will be free to worship in the way that I decide is right."

"Sure. Of course. Yeah, they should totally go to Jew church and wear those hats and eat that salty orange stuff with their bagels."

Rachel placed a soft kiss on his lips, "Let's lay down on the bed."

* * *

The next day at school Rachel decided to spend her free period with Jesse again. The two spent their time in the auditorium doing homework and eventually a little talking.

"When I'm old enough to get married and have children do you think it's important that I'm in a relationship that allows me to choose what religion they'll grow up to worship?" Rachel asked, ever since her conversation with Finn she had still been thinking about it.

"I'm assuming that you want them to be Jewish." Jesse commented resulting in a nod from Rachel, "Well, if it doesn't cause any problems with your husband then I don't see why not."

"Good. That's what I thought!"

"However,"

Rachel interrupted him, "However what?"

"What if when your children grow up they lose their faith or find another religion to be more appealing. Would you be hurt by that?"

A small pout formed, "Obviously I'd be hurt by that! Judaism is a huge part of my life! I want them to love it just like I do."

"But what if it just wasn't for them and they wanted to try something new that felt more right? Would you accept it or continue to be hurt?"

"They're my babies. I wouldn't be able to stay mad forever. If they're doing what they want.. I guess I'd be able to be okay with it."

Jesse smiled at her, "I think you're going to be a wonderful mother some day."

"Thanks.. But not until I'm twenty five!" She replied smiling back at him.

"Why twenty five?" Jesse questioned as he closed up his history text book.

"Twenty five will be a good time in my life. I will have already been in many broadway productions, won many Tony awards and be happily married. It seems like the perfect opportunity for having kids." Rachel explained.

The smile stayed on his face, "You should hold onto that dream. It sounds like a good one."

The two teenagers left the auditorium. Free period was over. It was time for class.

* * *

Sunday morning. Jesse, Rachel, Quinn and Judy all got out of her car. They were in the church parking lot and Jesse was especially nervous. He wanted to back out. Didn't everyone get to be chicken every now and then? Couldn't it be his turn now? He awkwardly pulled at his tie, it felt too tight although the more he thought about it maybe if he stopped tugging it at he'd pass out and get out of attending the service?

Rachel's eyes focused on Jesse. He was wearing another pair of black dress pants but she and Quinn had talked him into wearing a white button up shirt with a red tie over the black clothes they knew he'd try to wear. She walked over closer to him. "Are you alright?" She loosened his tie a little for him.

"I don't know if I can do this." He admitted.

Judy went inside. Quinn walked over to Rachel and Jesse. "If it helps, Kurt's going to church with Mercedes today. He's probably just as nervous as you are." She had overheard the conversation.

"It's only an hour." Rachel added, "Just think about Burt. You're doing this for him too right?"

Jesse nodded weakly.

Rachel slipped her tiny hand into his. Their fingers intertwined, "Let's go."

The three teenagers walked inside.

Jesse had never been in a church before. It was different from what he expected. It wasn't majestic like the ones he had learned about in History class yet it still felt welcoming. Quinn introduced Jesse and Rachel to a few people who came up to talk to her. He smiled but didn't say much. The service was about to start. It was time to take their seats.

He had been hoping to sit in the back row but Quinn had led them up towards the middle. Jesse was seated in between Quinn and Rachel. The pastor welcomed the congregation and soon the church was filled with music.

Jesse felt a little bit better when the music started. He glanced around at all of the singing people. Rachel and Quinn were both holding hymnals. Rachel held the book closer to Jesse so that he could see. Keeping his eyes on the words Jesse quietly began to sing along. During the next song he sang louder. Rachel and Quinn did the same, harmonizing with him perfectly.

The pastor spoke again. This time he talked about a prayer list.

Quinn spoke up, "I'd like to have Burt Hummel added to the prayer list. He's our friend's father and he's in the hospital right now. If you all could pray for him it'd be really appreciated."

The pastor nodded as he wrote down Burt's name. He then proceeded to say a special prayer for Burt and the rest of the people who had been mentioned. During the prayer Jesse felt Rachel hold his hand again. She gave it a little squeeze.

The service finished. Jesse, Rachel and Quinn got up to leave. On their way out they stopped to talk to the pastor who was shaking everyones' hands. "It was nice to see you today Miss Fabray." The man smiled at Quinn, "And are these your friends?"

Quinn nodded, "Yes, this is Jesse and Rachel."

Rachel and Jesse took turns shaking the man's hand, "I hope you enjoyed the service today. You're always welcome to come back."

"It would be lovely if you two came back." An old woman butted into the conversation, Jesse recognized her, she had been sitting ahead of them, "You all have beautiful voices. I really liked hearing you sing."

"Thank you." Jesse replied to the compliment, "I guess we'll just have to wait until next Sunday.. See what happens then."

He didn't know if he'd be back or not but just knowing that he would be welcomed to come felt good.

* * *

"Mr. Schuester. I have someone who would like to help me sing a message to Kurt. If everyone could keep their comments to themselves until the end of the song that would be wonderful." Rachel demanded as she marched into the choir room filled with glee clubbers. Jesse quietly followed her inside.

As soon as Jesse entered the room facial expressions changed. Everyone, with the exception of Quinn who was happy to see her friend, went from sadness to anger.

"St. Douche, get out of our choir room." Puck called out.

Quinn glared at Puck.

Finn clenched his fists, "Get away from my girlfriend too!" He added.

"Guys, calm down." Mr. Schuester said, he was also surprised by Rachel bringing Jesse there. What happened to the whole lion scenario?

"There are more important things to life than trying to figure out what comeback to use next in whatever this fight is we have going on. I'm here on behalf of my sadness towards Kurt's situation. Would you all like to keep insulting me or let me try to help out your friend? It's your choice." When no one answered him he walked over to the piano. Jesse ignored the dirty looks he received and took a seat. His fingers began to gently press against the keys.

_"Hey, where have you been?  
Where did you go looking for innocence?  
Shame is holding you down, selling you out  
Won't you come back again?_

'Cause you've found a way  
To go on for days pretending to live  
But you are not okay with all of that weight  
You need to give up

Come now, just let it go  
Let it fall down, let it all flow like  
The water that's rushing in over your soul 'til there's nothing left  
Won't you come to me and rest?"

Jesse's voice took over the room. During the second verse Rachel's accompanied him.

_"Hey, I know that you're scared to look in my eyes  
When you know that something's wrong  
I'll wait as long as it takes  
For you to find grace, it's been here all along_

'Cause you've found a way  
To go on for days pretending to live  
But you are not okay with all of that weight  
You need to give up

Come now, just let it go  
Let it fall down, let it all flow like  
The water that's rushing in over your soul 'til there's nothing left  
Won't you come to me?

As you are, dirty and broken  
With all your scars from all the unspoken  
With all the words that you wanted to say  
But you locked them away inside

Come now, just let it go  
Let it fall down, let it all flow like  
The water that's rushing in over your soul 'til there's nothing left"

Jesse smiled when Quinn and Mercedes sang the final chorus with him and Rachel.

"Come now, just let it go  
Let it fall down, let it all flow like  
The water that's rushing in over your soul 'til there's nothing left  
Won't you come to me and rest?"

"Rachel and I realize that with everything going on in your life you must be feeling physically and mentally tired. I've also been informed that you haven't exactly been relying on your friends for help. Kurt, you need to know that you can't do this alone and if you'll allow it you won't have to. Your friends are going to be there for you no matter what. I mean, I get that I'm not really a friend of yours but if you ever need to talk or just want some silent company, I'll gladly offer my services." Jesse stated.

"And I'll offer you mine too." Rachel added agreeing with what Jesse had said.

Jesse's eyes fell upon Kurt. A single tear fell down his cheek. Kurt stood up and walked over to the Rachel and Jesse. "Thank you." He whispered before pulling them in for a quick group hug.

"You're welcome." Jesse replied awkwardly. He hadn't expected for Kurt to hug them. A handshake maybe but definitely not a hug. Heck, for all he knew Kurt could've lashed out at them.

A few more tears fell. Kurt rushed back over to his seat beside Mercedes who instinctively pulled him in for a hug.

* * *

"I still think you should've stayed." Quinn stated, her eyes glued to Jesse's phone which she was currently using to text with.

"You know I couldn't. I don't belong in your glee club." Jesse already knew how this argument would end. Lately he had been having the same one with Quinn a lot. Neither person would be satisfied.

"But you could belong there. You'd have me, Rachel, Mercedes and now Kurt too!"

"Or I'd join and end up having my face smashed in by Finn and Puck. Talk about excitement."

"That wouldn't happen. Trust me."

"I do trust you! It's them I don't trust!" Jesse exclaimed, "Anyway, who are you texting and why must you use my phone?"

"Don't try to change the subject!" Quinn looked up from the phone, "But to answer your question I'm sending Santana a message. Just a reminder about Cheerios practice. And I'm using your phone because I can't be bothered to go find mine. Okay?"

He rolled his eyes, "Why can't you just accept that I'm not going to join New Directions?"

"I know that you miss it. Performing is your life. If you join our glee club then you'll be able to keep doing what you love."

"Maybe I need to rethink my life? Maybe for once I'd like to have a normal one, one that isn't just focused on performing! Is that too much to ask for?"

Quinn frowned at his harsh tone. She handed him his cell phone, "I guess not.. I'm sorry."

Jesse watched as she walked away from him. He felt bad that he had upset her. He felt even worse about the fact that he lied.

* * *

_"What if God was one of us  
Just a slob like one of us  
Just a stranger on the bus  
Trying to make his way home"_

Silently, Jesse was sitting in the back of the auditorium. Once again he went un-noticed. He had heard the news that Kurt's father was doing better. He didn't know if it had been God that saved Burt or not. Either way he was thankful. Watching the glee club perform made him think back to his conversation with Quinn. As usual, she was right. He did miss it.

* * *

**Author's Notes: **Just throwing it out there but the song in this chapter is called Rest by Nevertheless. You should check it out :)


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Notes: **Hey guys, I hope you enjoy the chapter. Keep sending reviews my way please (:

* * *

"Alright, let's gather around. Sorry I'm late guys, I was with Principal Figgins." Mr. Schuester said as he entered the choir room, "Bad news guys, Puckerman's in Juvie."

"Really was just a matter of time." Tina commented not surprised.

"What did he do?" Quinn questioned, sounding concerned.

"He drove his mom's volvo through the front of a convenience store and drove off with the ATM."

A few people laughed.

"And when is he getting out?" Rachel also seemed concerned.

"Unknown."

"He may be the dumbest person on this planet and that's coming from me." Brittany told the group.

"Guys, let's have some sympathy."

"For a guy who put his needs before the team's? We need his voice and his bad boy stage presence!" Finn complained, clearly annoyed.

"We can't look at this as a crisis. It's an opportunity."

"For what? Further embarrassment and humiliation." Quinn exclaimed.

"For welcoming our new member, Sam Evans. There he is."

A blonde boy rushed into the room, "How's it going?" He said as he stood beside Mr. Schue "Hey everybody, I'm Sam. Sam I am. And I don't like green eggs and ham."

* * *

"So is the new guy any good?" Jesse asked casually as he glanced down at the menu. He and Quinn had decided to go out to eat for supper so naturally they ended up at Breadsticks. Quinn had just informed him that there was a new member of New Directions.

"Honestly, I have no idea. The only person who heard him sing so far was Finn who says that he's good.. I guess we'll know soon enough. Everyone is pairing up for Mr. Schue's latest assignment, we have to sing duets." Quinn's eyes stayed on her menu.

"That'll be fun. Who are you singing with?"

"Once again, I'm not really sure." Quinn admitted, "I don't think I have a partner. Everyone's taken except Puck but he's in juvie so.."

Jesse's eyes widened, "Puck's in juvie? What?"

"Yeah. The dumby got caught stealing an ATM." She frowned. Quinn wasn't sure how she was supposed to feel about Puck's situation. When she first found out she was caught off guard. It surprised her. But now that the news was sinking in was she supposed to be saddened by it, annoyed like Santana or should she just brush it off? She wasn't dating Puck. She hadn't dated him in forever but they had Beth. The fact that they had a child together made everything more complicated. Even if they hadn't kept the baby they still had a special bond.

"Oh, well I'm sure he'll be fine." Jesse set his menu down and picked up a breadstick, "Hopefully he'll be back soon." He added before taking a bite.

Quinn nodded.

The waitress came, Jesse and Quinn ordered their meals. Jesse ordered a cheeseburger platter, Quinn ordered pasta and they decided to get a caesar salad to share.

"So, back to duets. Does Mr. Schuester even know that you don't have a partner?" Jesse asked once the waitress left.

Quinn shook her head, "Not yet. I'll probably have to bring it up soon though."

"I'd recommend that."

"But still, I don't know what I'm gonna do. Who knows when Puck'll be back. We don't have enough members to be split up equally and I really don't want to sing a duet with Mr. Schue, Rachel did that once and despite the fact that it sounded really good it was also really weird."

"Well, if you really need a partner that badly-" Jesse was cut off before he could finish. The waitress brought out their drinks and the salad.

"Thank you." Quinn smiled politely at the waitress. Jesse nodded in her direction.

"You were saying?" Quinn's attention was directed back at Jesse.

He shrugged, "Um, just talk to Mr. Schue, I'm sure he'll be able to sort something out. Maybe he'll be okay with you being in a trio."

"Yeah maybe." Quinn began to scoop out equal amounts of salad for them.

Jesse had chickened out on what he wanted to say. He was going to suggest that he could sing the duet with her. Her not having a partner would've been a good excuse for rejoining New Directions. It could've made it seem like he wasn't completely thrilled with the idea, he was just doing it for his best friend. The waitress ruined the moment though. Or so he thought. Maybe her interrupting him was a sign, maybe it was a sign that proved that him going back to glee was a bad idea? Or maybe it just wasn't the right time.

* * *

_"Don't go breaking my heart." _Finn was all smiles while he sang.

_"I won't go breaking your heart." _Rachel had been smiling but suddenly she felt a frown form and she couldn't shake it.

_"Don't go breaking my, don't go breaking my, don't go breaking my heart."_

They sang the rest of the song, Rachel tried to fake happiness but it just wasn't working. The song was about not breaking someone's heart. Rachel felt guilty. She knew that if Finn found out about her hanging out with Jesse then his heart might break.

"We're totally gonna win this thing." Finn stated referring to the duets challenge Mr. Schue had came up with. The winners got a free meal at Breadsticks.

"Yeah I know.." Rachel lacked Finn's excitment. She sat down on one of the chairs. Jesse wasn't the only thing bothering her. There was something else.

"Don't be sad, I mean Breadsticks has these vegans meatballs.. They're okay.."

"I'm not really a nice person." Rachel looked down at the floor, "I'm selfish. Fact is, I'm only really generous if there's something in it for me."

Finn sat down beside her, "Yeah, but I still like you."

"And you, you're so kind and open. Well it's made me want to be a better person." She paused to think for a few seconds, "We have to throw the competition."

"But I love Breadsticks."

Rachel explained to Finn that they needed to throw the competition so that Sam could win and feel accepted. She said that they needed Sam to want to stay in glee club so that they could make it to Nationals this year. The thought of trying to lose a singing competition would help distract her from Jesse for a while. Not showing up at the auditorium would also help too.

* * *

She didn't show up.

Jesse was surprised at how disappointed he felt after spending his free period without Rachel. Lately he had come to expect her to drop by the auditorium. She had been doing that for a little over a week now yet today she was no where to be found.

He hated that all of his frozen feelings were heating up again. After the bad reputation fiasco he had spent his time reteaching himself how to ignore feelings. He fled back to his Vocal Adrenaline companions who helped turn him back into the soulless automaton that he had become during his freshman year.

Being the lead singer of Vocal Adrenaline made him feel special. When he left he had no fears because Rachel made him feel special too, possibly even more than what he had already felt. That feeling blinded his judgement. He put his guard down only to end up getting hurt. Being triple casted with two of her ex boyfriends proved that he wasn't any more important than they were. It made him realize that he was merely a distraction.

She picked who she wanted to be with and it was them. It was New Directions, Finn, all of them. She wanted to stay friends with them and having Jesse as a boyfriend was holding her back from that. Even if she hadn't admitted that Jesse understood. So he went along with Vocal Adrenaline's plans. He egged her resulting in their relationship to be completely over. Except it wasn't over. Not for him anyway.

* * *

Jesse spotted Rachel walking through the hallway. She was alone, Finn wasn't with her. This gave him a chance to talk to her. "Rachel, I didn't see you in the auditorium yesterday." He stated as he started to walk with her.

Rachel didn't look at him, she kept her pace quick and marched on, "I was in the choir room with Finn. We were rehearsing a duet for glee club."

"I see. What song?"

Rachel mustered up a small glare, "Why do you care?"

"Just curious I guess." Jesse stopped walking, confused by her glare.

"You're not in glee club therefore it shouldn't matter to you. It's none of your business really."

He blinked, "Okay, um, will I be seeing you today during free period?"

"I doubt it. I'm busy." She walked off, she sighed quietly as she made her way down the next hall. Once again she felt guilty but this time she had good reasons. She was doing this for her relationship with Finn. She wanted to stay with him. He loved her and she felt the same way. Jesse broke her heart, he didn't deserve another chance. She trusted Finn with her heart this time. She knew that he didn't have any intention of breaking it.

* * *

"I don't understand it. I mean one week she's being all friendly and kind, taking me to church and stuff then the next week she's ditching me and being rude." Jesse complained to Quinn.

"Well last week was pretty crazy for everyone considering what happened to Kurt's dad. Maybe she was just weirded out by that or something else that was going on in her life."

Jesse watched Quinn work on her math homework, they were in the auditorium, glee club had just finished. "Are you implying that Rachel only hung out with me because she was weirded out?"

Quinn shrugged, "I don't know! Rachel hung out with me too! That never happens. I'd call that pretty weird. Besides, why do you care so much? If I recall you said you didn't have feelings for her anymore."

"I don't have feelings for her anymore!" He insisted, "I just, I thought her and I were becoming friends. That's all. I figured maybe you could help me out considering you're a girl."

"Why yes I am a girl but what does that have to do with anything?"

"I thought that maybe you'd be able to understand what's going on in that head of hers."

Quinn shook her head, "Sorry Jess, I hate to say it but I don't think anyone can truly understand what's going on in the head of Rachel Berry."

"I guess you're right." He sighed, "Anyway, did you ever talk to Mr. Schue about your partner problem?"

"Actually, I didn't have to."

"Oh really?"

"Kurt dumped Sam as his partner so Sam asked if he could partner up with me instead." Quinn told him.

"And how do you feel about that?"

"I don't know yet. He's kinda cute but I don't know him that well, I'll have to get back to you on that." She smiled slightly.

"Well good luck then." Jesse smiled a little before focusing on his history homework again.

* * *

The next day after a conversation with Quinn he heard some news which led him to the locker room. He was about to go inside when Sam Evans walked out through the door.

"Are you Sam Evans?" Jesse questioned, he suspected that he was because the boy's hair was incredibly blonde. It didn't look completely natural.

"Yeah.. What's up?" Sam was clearly confused.

"I heard you tried to kiss Quinn Fabray. Is that true?"

Sam nodded awkwardly, "Well, yeah, didn't go that well though.."

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Jesse demanded, not caring if anyone saw him lose his cool.

Sam backed up a little, "Chill dude, we didn't even kiss."

"Don't even think about trying anything ever again!"

"I won't!" Sam insisted, "She clearly has too many guys in love with her. I mean I had a feeling Puckerman would try to kick my ass but now Finn and you? Um, who are you anyway?"

"I'm Jesse St James. What does Finn have to do with this? And for the record, I'm not in love with Quinn."

"Finn just gave me some huge speech in the locker room a few minutes ago about how me kissing her wasn't cool but that I should still partner up with her for glee." Sam explained, "If you don't love her than why are you freaking out about this?"

"I can't believe this but for once I agree with that idiot. Kissing Quinn is a major no no." Jesse shrugged, "Okay so I love her but like, not in the way you're thinking. More in a sister type way, I suppose."

"So, would you have a problem with me still being her partner?"

"Only if you try something."

"What if I do try something again? I mean she's hot dude. And those eyes.."

"I know she's beautiful but if you don't learn to control your hormones then my fist will be meeting your face soon." Jesse stated sharply, "Got it?"

"Yes sir." Sam looked worried.

"Good. It was nice to meet you Evans. Enjoy your time with New Directions." Jesse added before walking off.

* * *

Glee club ended for another day. Just as Finn and Rachel had hoped Sam and Quinn won the duets competition. Rachel was happy that her plan had worked however the happiness ended when she overheard Sam saying that some Jesse kid had threatened him. Knowing that Jesse would be alone in the auditorium waiting for Quinn, Rachel went there right away.

"What is wrong with you?" She demanded, not even bothering to say hello.

"I could ask you the same question." Jesse looked over at her from sitting at the piano on stage.

She soon stood beside him. For someone so tiny she seemed to be filled with a lot of rage right now.

"You threatened Sam! Why would you do that?"

"He tried to kiss Quinn!"

"So? Who cares?"

"Obviously I do."

"Okay I get it. He was flirting with your girlfriend but threatening to punch him was so uncalled for."

Jesse rolled his eyes, "She's not my girlfriend!"

"Whatever, violence isn't the answer!"

"Do you really think I'd hit him?" Jesse questioned, "Come on Rachel. I thought you were smarter than this. Can't you see that it was only a bluff? I just needed to put the fear in him."

Rachel frowned, "Oh.."

"Was someone just waiting for an excuse to yell at me?" Jesse stood up. He liked to think that he was gaining the upper hand in this argument so why not have the height advantage too?

"No. Why would I do that?"

"You tell me. Actually, better yet, tell me what you would've done if Sam did get scared off by me."

She hated how amused he was becoming, "He didn't get scared off so there's nothing to tell."

"But hypothetically, if he did leave New Directions you would've begged for me to rejoin wouldn't you? You'd need me." Jesse smirked.

"I wouldn't need you, the team would. And it's not you we'd want, we'd need your _voice_." Rachel corrected.

"Why would you need my voice? I don't understand. You'll have to explain it to me. I thought your boyfriend was the amazing male lead?" The smirk grew larger.

Rachel sighed, "Don't make me say it.."

She didn't even have to say it. It was implied and he understood. Finn was a good singer but everyone, especially Rachel, knew that he, Jesse St James, was much more talented.

"Well, even if you do have Sam in your little club don't you still think that you'll need me? I was informed that Vocal Adrenaline has recently received a new star because someone seemed to think that violence was the answer." He commented using her words against her, "You sent her to a crack house, really Rachel? Really?"

"She didn't get hurt.." Rachel muttered.

"She could've died!"

"Okay, so I made a mistake! I'm paying for it now which is why I need to make sure that Sam doesn't leave us either."

"Word on the street is that she's good. Maybe even better than y-"

Rachel pointed at him angrily, "Don't!"

Jesse raised his hands in defense, "Calm yourself, I figured that rumor wasn't true but still. This Sam kid might be helpful but you'll need more than him to beat Vocal Adrenaline."

"What are you suggesting?"

Jesse spotted Quinn standing at the entrance of the auditorium. Looking back at Rachel he spoke, "Let's just say you'll be seeing me at the next glee club rehearsal." He winked before leaving the stage to go hang out with Quinn.


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Notes: **Oh snap, is Michaela writing an inbetween episode chapter :O :O :O lol. Yup. I hope this will entertain you guys until the Rocky Horror episode (: Also, since this is my own chapter/episode I've added some songs. This is glee after all! So I wasn't sure how to put them in and I ended up using the whole lyrics. If it's too messy or annoying just tell me. This will be a test? Also, I'd recommend listening to the songs too or giving your opinion on them. I'm probably not as good as Ryan Murphy when it comes to picking them out but I tried (: Reviews are love!

* * *

Today would be his first day back at glee. Jesse wasn't nervous at all. Quinn was excited to have him join New Directions, Kurt and Mercedes were pretty happy about it too. With Puck still being in Juvie that left Finn to be the only harmful threat but considering Rachel would be there Jesse assumed that Finn wouldn't try to pull anything.

Jesse walked into the choir room accompanied by Quinn but he was left alone when she rushed over to talk to Mercedes and Kurt. Jesse nodded a greeting to Brad.

Rachel and Finn walked into the choir room almost running into Jesse. "St. James." Finn kept his arm around Rachel's shoulder, pulling her closer when he spoke.

"Hudson." Jesse replied unsure of where this was going.

"I heard you were back in glee now." Finn paused, "I guess that's fine. With Puck gone I don't really have anyone to share the male leads with. I could use a rest."

Jesse failed to believe this, if Finn wanted a break then there was always Artie or Sam, maybe even Mike. Either way, it seemed like a kind gesture so Jesse went with it, "I'm happy to help out when I can."

Rachel smiled at them both.

To Rachel and Jesse's surprise Finn spoke again, "Um, I've always wondered.. why do you wear so much black? It looks like you're going to a funeral or something." He gently scratched the back of his head.

Jesse's arms were crossed, "Maybe I am."

Rachel looked up at Finn who looked even more confused and then at Jesse who seemed pleased with his answer. She rolled her eyes, "Ha ha, very funny but this isn't Walk the Line and you're not Johnny Cash."

"If you were my June then I'd try to be." Jesse flashed a quick smile before leaving to sit by Quinn. He didn't want to stay around in case Finn figured out who June was.

"What do months have to do with anything?" Finn mumbled causing Rachel to drag him to their seats.

Mr. Schuester had heard part of the conversation. It gave him an idea. "I'll be right back guys." He told them before leaving the room for a few minutes. The glee clubbers weren't too torn up by his disappearance. They continued to talk amongst themselves until he returned a few minutes later.

"Alright guys, I've finally figured out your assignment for this week." Mr. Schue said enthusiastically, "This week I want everyone to perform a country number!"

Everyone started talking at once.

_"Whoa-oh, whoa-oh, stuck like glue, you and me baby we're stuck like glue." _Jesse and Quinn sang to each other quietly with goofy expressions on their faces, the two friends seemed to be fine with Mr. Schue's idea.

Others were not so thrilled.

"Mr. Schue, there's no way that I'm gonna do this. I don't do Honky Tonk."

"Neither do I." Santana stated in agreement with Mercedes.

"It's lame." Artie added resulting in Brittany and Tina nodding.

"Come on guys! That's not the attitude I was hoping for. You need to give it a chance!" Mr. Schue demanded, "Here, to get a feel for it why don't we let our very own man in black start us off."

Jesse, clad in black dress pants and a black button up shirt, stood up next to Mr. Schue.

"Alright, now that we have our Johnny, who'd like to be his June?"

No one answered.

"Rachel?"

Everyone looked at her. Rachel had never declined an invitation to sing with someone. She spent a lot of her time complaining to Mr. Schue that she deserved more solos and duets.

Rachel bit her lip, defeated she stood up. She went over to Mr. Schue and Jesse.

"Mr. Schuester, as talented as I am I don't think I have a deep enough voice to do Johnny justice."

"You're in luck then because this isn't a Johnny Cash song." Mr. Schue handed a confused Jesse and Rachel their sheet music.

Jesse's eyes fell upon the sheet, his eyes were met with the title, _Johnny and June._

Rachel signaled Brad and the band to start playing. The sooner they started playing the sooner the duet would be over.

_"Oh there's something 'bout a man in black  
Makes me want to buy a cadillac,  
Throw the top back  
And roll down to Jackson town  
I wanna be there on the stage with you  
You and I could be the next rage, too  
Hear the crowd roar,  
Make 'em want more,  
I'll kick the footlights out"_

Jesse joined in during the chorus.

"_I wanna love like Johnny and June_  
_Rings of fire burnin' with you_  
_I wanna walk the line,_  
_Walk the line,_  
_'Till the end of time_  
_I wanna love,_  
_Love ya that much_  
_Cash it all in,_  
_Give it all up,_  
_And when you're gone_  
_I wanna go, too_  
_Like Johnny and June"_

Jesse had almost forgotten how incredible their voices sounded together.

Rachel found herself forgetting about glee club, forgetting about Finn and everyone else who was there in the room. Right now all she could see was Jesse.

_"I wanna hold you baby right or wrong_  
_Build a world around a country song_  
_Pray a sweet prayer,_  
_Follow you there,_  
_Down in history_

_I wanna love like Johnny and June_  
_Rings of fire burnin' with you_  
_I wanna walk the line,_  
_Walk the line,_  
_'Till the end of time_  
_I wanna love,_  
_Love ya that much,_  
_Cash it all in,_  
_Give it all up,_  
_And when you're gone,_  
_I wanna go, too_  
_Like Johnny and June_  
_Like Johnny and June"_

Jesse moved closer to Rachel, they stood facing each other.

_"More than life itself_  
_No-one else_  
_This endless promise_  
_They don't make love like that anymore_  
_Is that too much to be askin' for?"_

Rachel backed away, finally remembering where they were. She tried to escape behind the piano.

_"I wanna love like Johnny and June_  
_Rings of fire burnin' with you_  
_I wanna walk the line,_  
_Walk the line,_  
_'Till the end of time_  
_I wanna love,_  
_Love ya that much_  
_Cash it all in,_  
_Give it all up,_  
_And when you're gone,_  
_I wanna go, too_  
_Like Johnny and June_  
_Like Johnny and June"_

Jesse watched her, frowning as he sang the final words.

_"And when there gonna be no tears to cry,_  
_Only memories of our lives,_  
_They'll remember, remember_  
_A love like that."_

Mr. Schuester started clapping right away, "Great job you two! I hope everyone else was inspired by that. I look forward to what you all come up with."

Rachel sat back down beside Finn, Jesse took his seat by Quinn.

"That was pretty intense." Quinn whispered while Mr. Schuester was rambling on.

"What do you mean?" Jesse tried to act confused.

"You and Manhands, are you sure you're not over her?"

"It's called acting. If you want to make the song have more meaning you need to seem into it."

"Hun, you're not that good of an actor."

Jesse slumped back into his chair, "Stop talking, you need to pay attention to Schuester."

Quinn grinned to herself as she obeyed his command.

* * *

"Hey June." Finn said coldly, "Where's Johnny?"

Rachel looked up from her locker, "What are you talking about?"

"I've finally figured out who June was. According to Mr. Schue she wasn't a month, she was Johnny Cash's wife!"

"That's right, I could've told you that.."

"But you didn't! Why didn't you? Especially after St. Jerk said he wanted you to be his June!"

"This is exactly why I didn't tell you!" Rachel sighed, "I didn't want you to get all upset over it. It doesn't mean anything."

"Doesn't mean anything? I'm pretty sure that he's not over you!" Finn groaned, "It just makes me want to punch his face in."

"Hey! None of that!" Rachel glared, "I don't want you punching anyone! Besides, even if he's not over me who cares, I'm with you remember?"

Finn nodded sadly, "I just really don't want us to break up.."

"I don't want that either.. If it's bugging you that much I can talk to him about it?" 'Or sing about it.' Rachel thought, ideas were forming as she walked to her next class with Finn.

* * *

The next day during glee club Rachel was the first to speak up, "Mr. Schuester, I would like to perform my country assignment now."

"Of course Rachel, go ahead." Mr. Schue replied as he sat down with the students.

Rachel handed the sheet music to Brad and gestured for Tina and Santana to join her.

The three girls stood together in the middle of the room as the music started to play.

_"You said you were over me.  
You just stood there  
And watched me  
Falling apart  
You didn't care  
What it did to me  
You never even  
Thought twice  
About breaking my heart_

_Didn't you get what you wanted? (Didn't you get what you wanted?)_  
_Isn't she everything_  
_You said I wasn't?_

_Are you over me now?_  
_Tell me how does it feel_  
_To be the one left without,_  
_To lose something so real?_  
_Now that your world's crashing down_  
_Are you over me now?_

_I did what you told_  
_Me I should do_  
_I stopped wasting my tears_  
_And moved on with my life_  
_Now that you've seen me_  
_With some one new,_  
_That drives you crazy_  
_Makes you hate me baby_  
_Isn't that right?_

_I hope it was worth it, (I hope it was worth it)_  
_Sorry it hurts you baby,_  
_But you deserve it_

_Are you over me now?_  
_Tell me how does it feel_  
_To be the one left without_  
_To lose something so real?_  
_Now that your world's crashing down,_  
_Are you over me now?_

_Now that I'm over you_  
_Now that she's through with you_  
_Are you over me now? Are you over me? Are you over me?_

_Tell me how does it feel_  
_To be the one left without_  
_To lose something so real?_  
_Now that your world's crashing down_  
_Are you over me now?_

_Are you over me now?"_

Once again Mr. Schuester was the one to start off the round of applause. "Great job ladies!"

Jesse started to clap slowly from his seat. Rachel's eyes had been directly forced on him for the majority of the song. Their gazes locked again when he was clapping. He knew that song was meant for him.

* * *

"That was some song choice yesterday." Jesse commented when he noticed Rachel entered the auditorium. It was their free period. Jesse had expected to be alone but Rachel never ceased to surprise him.

"I hope you liked it. I figured you'd be able to relate well with it."

"Did you? Hm, that's very interesting."

Rachel nodded, "So do you have an answer or what?"

"You want to know if I'm over you?" Jesse mused, "Don't flatter yourself sweetheart, I broke up with you remember?"

"Don't give me that crap. I felt insecure about my looks, you told me I was beautiful. I mention Walk the Line, you say that you want me to be your June. During our duet -"

"You were just as into that duet as I was!" He cut her off, "And stop acting like you're the innocent victim. You had been coming in here to talk to me every day for over a week, did Finn know about that? Does he know that you took me to church? That you held my hand while we were there?"

"I was trying to be your friend!" Rachel defended, "I thought that gaining a sense of faith might help you!"

"Likely story, face it Rachel, if anyone isn't over the relationship we had it's you!"

Sighing Rachel turned away from him.

"Fine, walk away but you know you wish that you were still my girl!"

Jesse sighed and pushed his books away angrily once he was alone again.

* * *

"Jesse St James."

Jesse slammed his locker shut and looked down to see Artie seated beside him.

"Artie, what's up?" He asked, casually shoving his hands into his pockets.

"I was wondering if you'd like to help me with my country assignment. I've already picked out a song, I was thinking you could sing it with me?"

"You do have a pretty good voice so I suppose I could join you. May I ask what song you want to sing?"

"Let's go to the choir room, I'll show you."

Jesse nodded and wheeled Artie to the choir room so they could practice.

* * *

"Mr. Schue, I think it's my turn to sing my assignment." Artie told the teacher, "I've asked Jesse to help me out."

"Okay guys, let's see what you've got."

Artie wheeled himself out and grabbed his guitar, Jesse stood beside him ready to start the song. Jesse was fine with singing with Artie except the song choice made him feel weird. Artie wanted to sing this song to Tina but since Jesse was singing it too he was worried that Rachel would assume that it was about her.

_"I watch the way he looks at you  
He don't see you like I do  
He never speaks the words I long to say_

_He don't know that what he's got_  
_Is everything I'll ever want_  
_I can't keep this inside one more day_

_If you were my girl_  
_My feet would never touch the ground_  
_If you were my girl_  
_My heart would shout your name out loud_  
_I could conquer the world_  
_If you were my girl_

_You're the prayer I pray when I'm on my knees_  
_The oxygen that lets me breathe_  
_The flame that burns inside me all the time_

_Every note of a beautiful melody_  
_The perfect rhyme in poetry_  
_Baby, you are everything but mine_

_If you were my girl_  
_My feet would never touch the ground_  
_If you were my girl_  
_My heart would shout your name out loud_  
_There's nothing that I could not do_  
_If it was you I came home to_  
_I could conquer the world_  
_If you were my girl_

_Baby, I swear this flame will burn eternally_  
_So keep your eyes open, jump on in_  
_You will see what you need is me_  
_If you were my girl_

_Oh, I'd never want to see you cry_  
_You're with him and I don't know why_  
_What a different world_  
_If you were my girl_

_I would conquer the world_  
_If you were my girl"_

The boys harmonized perfectly through out the song and Artie's guitar solo had been a success. They both smiled when everyone started to clap.

"That was really awesome. Upbeat too!" Mr. Schue commented, "That gives me an idea. Ladies, I want you to come up with a girls' group performance for tomorrow. I don't want any sad or depressing songs. Give us something happy and fun!"

* * *

Mercedes was complaining, Santana and Brittany were talking amongst themselves, Tina was just being quiet leaving Rachel and Quinn to try to come up with an idea for their group performance.

"Could you guys hurry up and figure out an idea so we can leave?" Santana stated.

"Patience, I'm thinking." Rachel replied, deep in thought.

"There's no need for that. I've already got an idea." Quinn was happy with herself for figuring out an option.

"What song do you want to sing?" Tina asked.

"Let's just say you're all gonna have to find a guys' shirt." She grinned before continuing to tell them the song choice and how they should dress for the performance.

* * *

All of the guys were sitting in the auditorium with Mr. Schuester. The girls were hidden behind the curtain on stage.

"Are you ladies ready?" Mr Schue called out.

He got his answer when the curtain rose and the music started to play.

Jesse immediately started to laugh to himself when he heard the guitar riff.

_"Let's go girls"_

Rachel appeared first wearing a short black strapless dress with a man's button up shirt over italong with a top hat_._

_"Come on." _Quinn said, coming out next. Suddenly Jesse knew why she had asked to borrow his shirt.

Each girl came out wearing matching outfits from Shania's music video. They all had microphone stands which they used to dance with.

"_I'm going out tonight - I'm feelin' alright  
Gonna let it all hang out  
Wanna make some noise - really raise my voice  
Yeah, I wanna scream and shout  
No inhibitions - make no conditions  
Get a little outta line  
I ain't gonna act politically correct  
I only wanna have a good time_

_The best thing about being a woman_  
_Is the prerogative to have a little fun_

_Oh, oh, oh, go totally crazy forget I'm a lady  
Men's shirts short skirts  
Oh, oh, oh, really go wild yeah, doin' it in style  
Oh, oh, oh, get in the action feel the attraction  
Color my hair do what I dare  
Oh, oh, oh, I wanna be free yeah, to feel the way I feel  
Man! I feel like a woman!_

_The girls need a break tonight we're gonna take_  
_The chance to get out on the town_  
_We don't need romance we only wanna dance_  
_We're gonna let our hair hang down_

_The best thing about being a woman_  
_Is the prerogative to have a little fun_

_Oh, oh, oh, go totally crazy forget I'm a lady_  
_Men's shirts short skirts_  
_Oh, oh, oh, really go wild yeah, doin' it in style_  
_Oh, oh, oh, get in the action feel the attraction_  
_Color my hair do what I dare_  
_Oh, oh, oh, I wanna be free yeah, to feel the way I feel_  
_Man! I feel like a woman!_

_The best thing about being a woman_  
_Is the prerogative to have a little fun (fun, fun)_

_Oh, oh, oh, go totally crazy forget I'm a lady_  
_Men's shirts short skirts_  
_Oh, oh, oh, really go wild yeah, doin' it in style_  
_Oh, oh, oh, get in the action feel the attraction_  
_Color my hair do what I dare_  
_Oh, oh, oh, I wanna be free yeah, to feel the way I feel_  
_Man! I feel like a woman!_

_I get totally crazy_  
_Can you feel it_  
_Come, come, come on baby_  
_I feel like a woman"_

"WOO!" Jesse cheered, his laughter still going on as all of the guys began to applaud them.

Sam began whistling. Mike gave them a standing ovation. Finn, Kurt and Mr. Schuester continued to clap loudly.

"Now that's what I'm talking about!" Mr. Schue exclaimed happily. "I'm really impressed by the effort you girls put into this. Really well done!"

"Thanks Mr. Schue." Rachel smiled at the teacher and then down at Finn. She winked at him before exiting the stage.

* * *

Rachel and Jesse spent the rest of the week avoiding each other after their argument. It wasn't until Mr. Schue got them to perform the group number that they were forced to be close to each other. Mr. Schue decided that the glee club should perform My Wish by Rascal Flatts. Each glee club member was put into a group of three on stage. They were all sitting on stools. Jesse was sitting in a group with Rachel and Quinn, Sam was with Santana and Brittany while Finn was in the middle with Artie, Tina, Mercedes and Mike. Being in glee club had its perks but the awkwardness with Rachel was becoming quite annoying. Jesse was starting to wonder if he should just give up and tell her the truth?

* * *

**Author's Notes: **the songs were

johnny and june - heidi newfield

over me now - gloriana

if you were my girl - emerson drive

man! i feel like a woman - shania twain

my wish - rascal flatts

:)


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's Notes: **IT'S ROCKY HORROR TIME :D Reviews are love :) ps: kurt & quinn owned that episode.. in my opinion anyway xD riff raff & magenta ftw.

* * *

"Great news guys, I've had a little inspiration. This weeks' musical lesson isn't really a lesson, it's a musical." Mr. Schuester paused, "Rocky Horror."

"Mr. Schue, while I admire your choice of the ground breaking 70s musical. Aren't you worried that the adult themes might be a point of controversy." Rachel commented.

"Seriously, a school in Texas couldn't even do Rent. It caused an outrage and they had to cancel the show." Kurt added.

"Isn't that the whole point of the arts? Pushing boundaries, doing things people say you can't do for the sake of self expression. I've got it all figured out. I've cut out some of the more risque sections and I'm sending home permissions slips to all of your parents to make sure that they're okay with it. And we're going to charge admission and use the proceeds to help pay for transportation to nationals in New York."

The glee members started to cheer.

"Okay, let's talk about casting." Mr. Schue continued.

"Finn and I will play Brad and Janet." Rachel announced happily.

Mr. Schuester began passing out scripts, "Actually Rachel, I've already decided that Jesse will play Brad."

Everyone looked back and forth between Mr. Schue and Rachel.

"What? Then who am I supposed to play?"

"Janet."

Rachel shook her head furiously, "Not if Finn isn't my Brad."

"Well there's a chance that Finn might be your Brad. He's going to be Jesse's understudy."

"What's an understudy?" Finn whispered to Rachel.

"It means that if Jesse becomes ill and for some reason can't perform you'll be taking his place." Rachel explained quickly.

"Ohh." Finn paused, "So wait, why can't I just be Brad? I have to learn the part anyway if I'm going to be the uderstudy."

"Understudy." Jesse corrected.

"Because, we need to start sharing the lead roles more."

"So you're giving the lead to a guy who's been the lead all his life?"

Mr. Schuester sighed, "Finn, I'm sorry. You're not Brad. End of discussion."

"But Mr. Schuester, I agree with Finn. I'd much rather play a different character. I'm not a fan of Brad. I've always thought that he was a bit, slow." Jesse's comment resulted in a glare from Rachel.

"A bit slow? Are you trying to imply something?"

"Enough!" Mr. Schuester yelled, "I said end of discussion! If you're not happy with your role then too bad. You can't always get what you want remember?"

Rachel rolled her eyes at Mr. Schuester's use of lyrics.

* * *

The glee club was in the auditorium running lines. Jesse was standing near Finn, everyone was taking a break.

"So what do you think of the musical?" Jesse asked casually before taking a sip out of his water bottle.

"It's really weird.. and nobody really wears any clothes.."

Jesse couldn't help but laugh at Finn's comment, "Yeah, it's a classic though. It was very risque at the time, still is I suppose."

"I still wish I was Brad." Finn complained.

"Well you know I'd trade if I could. It goes against everything I've been taught to give up a lead role but I just find Brad to be so dull. All he does is go around saying, 'Hi, my name is Brad Majors', damn it Janet, I love you, 'Great Scott!' and then he rambles on about using a phone for a while." Jesse stated the quotes dramatically before taking another drink to stop his rambling.

All Finn paid attention to was Jesse quoting Damn it, Janet. "I don't like that either. She's my girlfriend, hearing another dude say that he loves her sucks."

"You must have a lot of complaints about the musical then." He mused.

"Uh, not really. Just the stuff that I said."

Jesse raised an eyebrow, "Have you even read the rest of the script passed Damn it, Janet?"

Finn started off nodding awkwardly but ended up shaking his head, "We've only worked on Damn it, Janet so far.. I didn't see the point in looking ahead." He admitted.

"I'm surprised that Rachel didn't make you watch the movie."

Finn shrugged.

"Anyways, if Damn it, Janet bothers you I can't imagine that you'd approve of her wandering around in her underwear."

Finn's jaw dropped slightly, "What?"

"You see, generally Janet's clothes are taken away from her after Time Warp."

"Does she get them back?"

"Not really."

"What else do you know?" Finn demanded, clearly he was getting annoyed.

"Let's see, I'm assuming you won't be happy to know that Janet hooks up with Frank N Furter and Rocky."

"What?" Finn repeated.

"Janet starts off being the sweet innocent girl but by the end of it she really learns how to get around."

"Are you calling her a slut?" Finn's fists clenched.

Jesse shrugged his shoulders, "I guess you could say that."

Finn punched Jesse in the face.

"What the hell?" Jesse reacted with self defence. As soon as Finn punched him Jesse fought back with a punch to Finn's stomach.

"Finn!" Rachel exclaimed, she was the first to notice the boys fighting.

"Hey! Guys, stop it!" Mr. Schuester rushed over to get between them.

Quinn ran over to Jesse, she pulled him away from Mr. Schuester and Finn.

Jesse let Quinn lead him away. The boy gingerly touched his face. He grimaced when he realized he was bleeding.

"What is wrong with you?" Rachel's voice was full of anger when she questioned Finn.

"I was defending your honor!" Finn told her.

"What?" There was more anger this time.

"He called you a slut!" Finn yelled causing everyone to stare at them.

Rachel turned to Jesse, in a matter of seconds her anger was looking like it might change into sadness, "..is this true?"

"No!" Even Jesse was surprised at how quick he answered the question, "Of course not." He paused, "We were talking about Janet. Rachel, I would never say that about you."

Rachel stared at him for a moment before looking back at Finn. Finn was unamused. He looked around at the staring faces before storming off.

Mr. Schuester cleared his throat, "Um, yes, go to my office!" He called out to Finn who was already gone, "You too." He added glancing over at Jesse.

Quinn had been in the middle of dabbing away at the blood on Jesse's face when Mr. Schue called for him. She handed him the kleenex so he could follow the teacher.

* * *

"So what happened?" Quinn asked Jesse, he had just left Mr. Schuester's office.

"Apparently I'm getting detention for being hit in the face." Jesse now had an ice pack pressed against his face, it muffled his voice a little.

"Actually, you probably got detention for punching Finn in the stomach." Quinn pointed out.

"It was self defence!"

"Mr. Schue didn't like that argument did he?"

Jesse shook his head, "No.."

"You didn't call Rachel a slut did you?"

Once again Jesse shook his head.

"I figured." Quinn stated, "I knew that you wouldn't say that about someone you like."

"I don't like Rachel." Jesse objected.

"Oh right, obviously you don't like Rachel. You _love_ her." She grinned at the flustered look on his face.

He looked like he was about to object again but ended up not saying anything right away. He sighed, "I hate that you're always right."

* * *

The next day Jesse was late arriving to the auditorium during free period. When he got there he was surprised to see Rachel sitting at the piano.

"Hi.. Uh, I can go if you want me to.." Jesse mumbled.

Rachel saw his bruised face and immediately felt sad, she shook her head weakly, "No, it's alright.. You can stay.."

Jesse didn't know where to sit. Normally when he came to the auditorium he'd take over the piano but today Rachel was sitting there. He was considering one of the seats in the front row when he noticed Rachel move over a little on the piano bench. Taking a chance he went up and sat beside her. She didn't tell him to move.

Rachel glanced up at the boy beside her. Together they sat on the small piano bench, their bodies practically touching each other. A small smile formed on her lips when Jesse's arm brushed against hers. "I like your sweater.." She spoke quiet, he looked confused, "It's soft." She explained.

Jesse unbuttoned his black cardigan and put it around her shoulders.

"What are you doing?" It was Rachel's turn to be confused.

"You have goosebumps, I assumed that you're cold. Or nervous."

He was right. Considering she was only wearing a t-shirt and a skirt she was cold. She was nervous too. Rachel was nervous of being so close to him. She knew that she had given him the idea of sitting next to her but that didn't stop her feelings from getting in the way. She wanted to believe that she was over him. She wanted to be completely in love with Finn and have no confusing feelings about Jesse. If only life were that easy.

Rachel slipped her arms through the sleeves. It was too big but very comfy. It also had his smell. "Does your face still hurt?" She asked instead of answering his previous question.

Jesse nodded, "Yeah, you're dumb boyfriend sure has a good punch."

"You need to learn how to be nice. Calling people dumb and slut isn't going to get you far in life."

"Hey, I didn't call you a slut. I swear."

"I trust Finn, if he said you did then you probably did.."

"So you don't trust me?"

"It's not like you've given me any reason to."

Jesse frowned, he knew where this conversation was headed and he didn't approve. They hadn't discussed the egging yet. Actually, they had barely discussed anything about their break up.

When Jesse failed to answer Rachel continued speaking, "There was a time when I trusted you but that was clearly a mistake. You seduced me so that you could spy on our glee club."

"That's a lie."

"I doubt it."

"Okay, so maybe seducing you was part of the plan but spying on your glee club and actually falling in love with you? That wasn't. If you honestly don't believe me then why don't you go have a chat with your mother. I'd like to think that you'd remember that she was my coach but unlike you, she trusted me. She trusted me so much that she gave me the task of introducing a daughter and mother. The tape of her singing? Rachel, she gave it to me to slip in with your stuff."

Rachel wanted to leave. She wanted to escape the situation she had gotten herself into but her legs weren't in the mood to cooperate. "I.. I don't understand, you claim to have loved me yet you went back to Vocal Adrenaline, you egged me.."

"I know what I did was wrong and I'm sorry. I've regretted it since the second it happened." Jesse paused, his eyes fell upon the piano keys, "You've always said that being a part of something special makes you special. When I was with Vocal Adrenaline I felt special. I was worshipped at Carmel for my talents and looks. When I transferred to McKinley I didn't even consider worrying about what might happen because I had you. You made me feel special, surprisingly you've made me feel way more special than Vocal Adrenaline ever did. Except then I felt like I was starting to lose you, the whole bad reputation thing really messed me up. Suddenly I was feeling insecure and I hated it. I ended up going on that trip with the other VA members to regroup, I didn't like the way I was feeling so I wanted them to turn me back into the soulless automaton that I used to be. Egging you insured my ticket back into the group and back onto a winning team. No matter how much it hurt me I figured there was no sense in trying to do damage control because I'd be leaving for LA in a few months and you'd run off to Finn. Clearly I was half right.."

Rachel tried to process everything Jesse was telling her. She tugged at the sleeves of his sweater, rubbing the soft material with her thumb. "So are you saying that I'm not worth fighting for?" She asked quietly.

"I love you Rachel and I think you're definitely worth fighting for but I thought I was leaving for LA, there was no way that we'd be able to have a long distance relationship. You need a boyfriend who's here for you. Someone you can talk to in person, someone who can hold you close when you need a hug."

She looked at him, "You still love me?"

Jesse met her gaze, "Unfortunately." He nodded.

"You don't seem too thrilled with it."

"Why should I?" Jesse exclaimed, "I'm stuck watching you with that dense football player all the time! He doesn't deserve you."

"And you think you do?"

"Probably not.. I'm a much better candidate though."

"Finn's a nice guy." Rachel finally stood up, "He loves me and I love him. You need to accept that Jesse. I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry. At least one of us needs to be happy." Jesse stated glancing up at the clock. The bell was going to ring any minute now.

The two teenagers went there separate ways when the bell rang. Rachel began to wonder if she really did love Finn. Everything that had just happened with Jesse really caught her off guard. She felt so overwhelmed that she forgot to give him his sweater back.

* * *

The next day before glee rehearsal Rachel arrived at the choir room early finding Jesse, Quinn, Kurt and Mercedes goofing off.

"Your wig is hilarious. I swear, during Damn it, Janet I find it so hard to concentrate! You guys are too amusing." Jesse told them with a laugh as he poked Quinn's afro.

Quinn, who was also laughing, took off her wig and put it on Jesse's head. She situated it so that it looked normal and then the four friends began to laugh harder.

"Lookin' good Jesse." Mercedes teased.

"I think I can rock this look."

Kurt shook his head, "Whatever helps you sleep at night." He grinned.

"You look cute but let's face it. Clearly I look the best with the wig." Quinn stated smiling until she realized that Rachel had entered the room. Rachel looked like she felt out of place, Quinn also noticed that she was clinging onto one of Jesse's sweaters.

Jesse turned his head when he saw that Quinn was staring at something. "Rachel." He greeted, "You're early."

Rachel nodded, "I have your sweater."

"I can see that." Jesse motioned for her to take the empty seat next to him.

Nervously Rachel walked over to them. She didn't know whether to feel welcome or not. Her relationship with Quinn had never been good, Mercedes wasn't a huge fan of her either however she was beginning to get along with Kurt.. Jesse, on the other hand, was simply a mess of confusion to her now. "What are you guys doing?" She asked timidly as she passed Jesse his sweater.

Jesse hung the sweater over the chair he was sitting on.

"Nothing, just talking about Rocky Horror and waiting for glee." Kurt explained.

"I'm so excited to sing Sweet Transvestite today."

Kurt nodded in agreement with Mercedes, "You're going to sound awesome."

"I'm sure you'll sound incredible Mercedes but to be honest I'm still a little disappointed that we don't have a male Frank N Furter." Rachel admitted.

Before anyone had a chance to say something rude to Rachel Jesse spoke, "Since we're discussing that topic I think I should admit something too.. I find it disappointing that Puck's in juvie because I think he would've made a hilariously good Frank N Furter. Just think about that for a minute."

There was a short silence before the teenagers bursted out with laughter.

Jesse smiled at Rachel during the laughing fit.

She smiled back, "Nice wig."

"Thanks."

The laughter died down as one by one the other glee club members started entering the room.

* * *

Rachel had just gotten home from running lines with Finn. She crawled into bed and stared at the ceiling for a moment before shutting her eyes. Her mind flashed back to her conversation with him. Finn was worrying about his body. Rachel tried her best to comfort him by telling him that she loved the way he looked, which she did, but suddenly she was realizing something. There were many times when she had been having a similar problem. The majority of the school made fun of her clothing and body, there had been times when Finn had been around her when that happened yet he never said anything. Rachel thought back to the day when Brittany and Santana had made fun of her and instead of defending her Finn had agreed with them. That had only been a few weeks ago. She also remembered that Jesse had comforted her during that time.

She sighed dramatically. Why did he always have to find his way into her thoughts?

* * *

"I want to apologize for putting you guys through all of this. Particularly, Jesse and Sam."

"It's fine, I'm healing." Jesse told Mr. Schuester.

"And I got asked to be June in the Men of McKinley High calendar." Sam added.

"I'm happy for you but we still can't do the musical. Look, I was wrong. Rocky Horror isn't about pushing boundries or making an audience accept a certain rebelious point of view. Those are my reasons for doing it and they aren't worth risking what we have here. And when I was younger and they started midnight shows of Rocky Horror it wasn't for envelope pushers it was for outcasts. People on the fringes who had no place left to go but were searching for some place, any place, where they felt like they belonged. Sound familiar? The truth is, with that perspective Rocky Horror is the perfect show for this club."

"Well then why aren't we putting it on?" Santana asked.

"We're still going to perform Rocky Horror, we're just not doing it for an audience. We're doing it for ourselves."

_Let's do the time warp again_

_

* * *

_

**Author's Notes: **question, considering we have to wait two weeks for the next episode do you guys want another inbetween episode chapter?


	8. Chapter 8

**Author's Notes: **alright, the people have spoken! i've made another inbetween episode chapter. i hope everyone likes it xD please remember to leave me some reviews, it only takes a second. oh and to the people who have added over me now to their story alerts, favorite stories and me to their author alerts i'm very thankful for that (:

* * *

It was Wednesday. The students of McKinley High were buzzing with excitement. They were getting the rest of the week off because of teacher conventions. Everyone loves a long weekend, especially when Halloween's on Sunday. The glee club members could barely focus on what Mr. Schuester was talking about. They were anxiously waiting for glee to end for the day, well all except Rachel, because once glee ended they'd be able to go start their long weekends.

Mr. Schue could see that he was getting no where so he decided to let them talk amongst themselves for the rest of the period. There was about 15 minutes left.

"Jesse," Quinn called him over from talking to Mike.

Following the blonde's command he walked over to where she was sitting with Mercedes and Kurt.

"We're going to have a movie night at Mercedes' house tomorrow." Quinn informed him.

"And by movie night she actually means weekend." Kurt added, resulting in Mercedes to speak, "My parents are out of town for the weekend, they're going to some dental convention."

"You gotta love conventions." Jesse grinned, "I'll be there. Is anyone else coming or is it just gonna be us?"

"Hmm.." Quinn pondered the thought as she looked at Mercedes who was also thinking about it.

"How about we just make it a big glee event?" Kurt suggested, "You're parents wouldn't mind would they?"

"Nah, they trust me." Mercedes paused with a grin, "Plus what they don't know won't hurt them." She stood up from her seat and walked to the middle of the room causing her to gain everyone's attention. "Hey y'all, movie night at my place. Everyone's invited."

Rachel slowly began to raise her hand.

"Yes, even you Berry." Mercedes told her, "Oh, and girls can bring sleeping bags to stay the night."

"What kind of movies are you going to watch?" Mike asked.

"Some random ones and then definitely some scary ones closer to Sunday. It is Halloween after all." Mercedes grinned.

Mike nodded a sign of approval, "Cool, I'll come."

"Me too." Tina smiled.

"I'll be there too." Sam flashed a smile in Quinn's direction.

Brittany looked to Santana, pouting slightly. Santana rolled her eyes, "We might show up. Maybe."

"I'll have to ask my mom." Artie stated.

"Considering it's a glee club function I guess we'll drop by." Rachel commented, holding Finn's hand.

"Actually," Finn said, "I'm busy this weekend. My mom wants me and her to go visit my grandparents.. I won't be home until Sunday night."

Rachel seemed a little disappointed, the rest of the glee club members started to talk about Mercedes' idea until the bell rang ending classes for the week.

* * *

Kurt and Jesse were the first to arrive at Mercedes' house. Quinn answered the door with a grin on her face when she saw the boys. Kurt was standing with a hand on his hip while Jesse was barely visible due to the amount of pillows and blankets he was holding.

"I can see why you like this boy." Kurt smirked, "He can be very useful."

"I know. He's such a good little helper." Quinn agreed teasingly, "Come now, Jesse, take these to the living room. Chop chop!"

Jesse rolled his eyes as he marched passed her, "You guys suck."

Jesse carried Kurt's stuff into the living room where he found Mercedes looking through her DVD collection. One by one the rest of the glee clubbers arrived. Tina and Mike arrived, then Sam, Brittany dragged a reluctant Santana into the house and last but not least, Rachel. Mercedes had received a call from Artie who was unable to attend because his mother was not impressed by his latest English marks and considering he had another English test on Monday his mother demanded that he stayed home to study.

"Mkay, what do you guys wanna watch first?" Mercedes asked from standing in front of the tv.

Jesse was sitting on the couch with his arm resting casually around Quinn, Kurt was on the floor beside the couch stretched out on his bed of pillows and blankets that he had brought, Santana and Brittany were sharing with Kurt. Mike and Tina were cuddling on the love seat, Rachel was sitting in a recliner while Sam was on the floor beside the love seat with pillows and blankets that Mercedes had provided. Each person shrugged and mumbled an I don't know.

"Okay, let me put it this way, do you want to laugh and then cry or cry and then laugh?"

Jesse, Sam and Mike all groaned.

"I vote for crying and then laughing." Quinn stated, resulting in nods from the girls and Kurt.

"I thought we were going to watch cool movies." Mike complained.

"I don't want to watch some sappy chick flick." Sam continued and Jesse nodded, "I agree. Do we have to watch one?"

"Either watch The Notebook or leave boys, it's your choice." Mercedes stated while putting the DVD into the DVD player.

"The Notebook? Again?" Jesse looked down at Quinn, "How many times do we have to watch that movie?"

"It's a classic and so romantic, it never gets old.. Plus Ryan Gosling's hot." Quinn and the girls giggled.

Sam and Mike groaned again, mumbling complaints.

"Fine, start the movie up." Jesse said finally.

"You're seriously okay with this dude?" Mike asked.

Jesse shrugged, "Sure, Rachel McAdams is in this movie."

"Oh she's hot."

"Exactly." Jesse grinned in agreement with Sam's comment.

Quinn hit him lightly, letting out a soft laugh.

The previews started and Mercedes sat down beside Kurt. Jesse noticed the empty spot on the couch. He had assumed that Mercedes would've sat there but when she didn't he felt like he should offer it to someone.

"So, who else wants me to be their shoulder to cry on?" His eyes wandered to Rachel who was sitting alone in the recliner, she hadn't said much yet. It was weird.

She met his gaze, "I'm fine here."

"Suit yourself." He said masking his disappointment with his show face.

"I think you should push over so I can sit on that side of the couch." Sam suggested, his eyes locked on Quinn.

"I don't think so Lady Lips." Santana shot in, "Berry might've turned down his offer but I won't." Santana hopped up from the floor to sit next to Jesse.

Brittany gave Santana a disappointed look from the floor, "Is there any room for me?"

Santana looked over at Jesse and Quinn, they pushed over making a little more room for Brittany to sit beside Santana.

Suddenly the couch was crowded. Jesse's arm was still around Quinn but now his other arm was being held by Santana who ignored Brittany's offer of Santana holding onto her arm instead.

Rachel forced her eyes onto the tv screen as the movie started to play. Just like the majority of teenage girls out there she loved the Notebook however what she didn't like was Santana sitting next to Jesse. She regretted her decision of saying no. She'd much rather sit by Jesse than have to watch Santana drape herself all over him. She tried to convince herself that she only found it annoying because there had always been tension between her and Santana (and by tension she meant Santana always picking on her) but she knew that wasn't the true reason. It was because she didn't like seeing Jesse surrounded by other girls. How how she hated the feeling of jealousy.

* * *

The teenagers finished watching the Note Book and spent the next few hours by watching Mean Girls and Robin Hood. They took a quick break to order some pizza before ending the day by watching Alien and Scream.

It was getting late. Mike and Sam had both left. The girls were all upstairs except for Rachel who was in the kitchen and Jesse who was flipping through the tv channels. Rachel walked through the living room with a glass of water.

"Going to bed?" Jesse asked casually.

"Mhmm." Rachel mumbled mid drink.

"I don't think so." Jesse stated, "I think you're going to sit with me for a while."

"Why would I want to do that?"

"Well it was obvious that you regretted not sitting with me earlier. This will give you another chance." Jesse smirked.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Rachel sipped her water again.

"I saw you looking at me."

"I was simply hoping that you didn't get a disease from Santana."

"Likely story. But whatever, come sit." Jesse patted the spot on the couch next to him.

"No."

"Rocky Horror's on.." Jesse grinned knowing that she wouldn't pass up the chance to watch a musical.

"Fine." She plopped down on the couch beside him, "I'm only sitting here because it's directly in front of the tv. I want the best viewing experience, that's all."

"Mhmm, whatever you say." Jesse was still grinning.

The movie started and they ended up laughing and singing along with the musical numbers.

Rachel could never do these kinds of things with Finn. Whenever they watched musicals he either fell asleep or simply didn't know the songs so she would have to sing alone.

"How much longer until the movie's over?" Rachel yawned, slouching in the couch.

"There's still another forty five minutes left." Jesse replied with a soft laugh, "Tired?"

Rachel nodded, without thinking she scooted over closer to him and rested her head against his shoulder.

"Why don't you head up to bed?" Jesse suggested although he didn't want her to leave.

"I want to finish the movie." Rachel tried to be determined but Jesse knew that she was going to be out like a light in a few minutes.

"Okay, well enjoy the rest of the movie then." Jesse put his arm around her shoulder.

"I will." She mumbled, unwillingly closing her eyes.

Jesse finished watching the movie with a sleeping Rachel cuddling into him. He turned the tv off and quickly drifted off into a deep sleep.

* * *

_"A dream is something that fills up the emptiness inside. The one thing that, you know if it came true, all of the hurt would go away." _

Rachel woke up first. It took her a moment to realize that she was laying on someone and their arms were wrapped around her body, cuddling with her. Jesse. They must've fallen asleep watching Rocky Horror. Her head was resting against his chest, she lifted it to look at the sleeping boy. He was starting to stir.

Jesse groaned softly and then mumbled something in his sleep. Apparently he wanted waffles. She giggled quietly before poking him, "Jesse, wake up."

He stirred again, this time opening his eyes. "Rachel?" He noticed how they were laying, "I.. Sorry.." Jesse mumbled and then removed his hands from being around her body.

"It's alright.." Rachel said softly.

They slowly sat up, Jesse began to rub his eyes.

Rachel smiled at Jesse who was now yawning. He looked cute. His hair was messier than usual and his eyes were still full of sleep. It was obvious that he would've prefered to sleep longer.

"Did you sleep well last night?" Jesse asked, trying to stop himself from yawning.

"Yes," She slipped her arm through his, snuggling in once again, "Really well."

"Me too." Jesse missed the way she felt against his skin, this was nice.

"Did you have any dreams last night?"

"Yes. I've been having a recurring dream lately."

"What's it about?"

"I dream that someday you'll be mine again." He spoke softly as he stared into her eyes.

"Why isn't that an inevitability?" Rachel whispered, looking up at him.

"You tell me?"

Jesse leaned in slowly for a kiss but was met with disappointment when Rachel turned her head at the last possible second causing him to kiss her cheek instead of her lips.

"I can't.." Rachel whispered, Jesse didn't move his face. His lips were still lingering on her skin. It took all of Rachel's self control to stop herself from actually kissing him. She wanted to. They both knew it.

"I know.." Jesse's voice was hush. Eyes closed, he breathed in deeply, taking in her scent.

"It's just.. I- Finn.." She stammered, "I don't want to hurt him."

The boy pulled away, "So you'll settle with hurting me?"

Rachel shook her head quickly, "No, no, that's not what I meant." She paused, looking away from the hurt expression on his face while she tried to find the right words, "I just don't want this to be an affair."

"Then what do you want it to be?" Jesse asked, using his free hand to turn her head so she'd look at him again.

"Honestly? I don't know.. I just know that whatever happens, I want it to happen with you."

A smile took over Jesse St. James' features, a soft, relaxed smile. He was looking at a girl who had slept in the same clothes from the day before, whose hair was messed up and he assumed that on the inside she was completely freaking out over what was happening right now and to him, she couldn't be more beautiful if she tried. Jesse was completely smitten.

His smiled caused Rachel to blush, he didn't even have to say anything but she knew how he was feeling. The butterflies in her stomach were going overtime but she knew there was still something she needed to bring up.

"Nothing can happen until I talk to Finn."

Jesse nodded, "And after that happens?"

"We'll take things slow."

"I can respect that."

Rachel smiled, "Good, because if you don't I've got a hungry lion waiting for you."

Jesse raised his eyebrow, "Is that a threat?"

"Maybe." Rachel grinned mischievously.

Before Jesse and Rachel could continue their conversation Kurt, Mercedes, Quinn and Tina entered the room.

"And what's going on in here?" Quinn questioned with a small grin.

"Oh nothing." Jesse replied grinning back at her.

"Good morning." Rachel added with a smile, not bothering to let go of Jesse's arm.

"I bet you two sure slept well." Kurt mumbled causing Mercedes, Tina and Quinn to giggle.

"Speaking of that, I'm sorry for that I didn't leave when Mike and Sam left.. I fell asleep watching a movie." Jesse told them.

"Nah, it's cool. You were supposed to stay over anyway." Mercedes replied.

"I was?"

"Of course, you never know when I'm going to need my teddy bear." Quinn said, "Although, I have a feeling that I'm going to have to start sharing again." She looked at Jesse and then at Rachel.

"Possibly." Rachel looked back up at Jesse who smiled back at her.

"You should go get some clean clothes and pajamas." Kurt suggested.

Jesse nodded, "Good idea."

"I should too." Rachel commented.

"Actually, my clothes are upstairs, you can borrow some pajamas if you'd like." Quinn offered, she tried to play it cool but it obviously came off as a little awkward considering Quinn was never nice to Rachel.

Rachel was surprised by Quinn's offer, "If you're sure then okay.. thanks."

"Okay, well, I guess I'll go get my stuff. Are Mike and Sam coming back today?" Jesse got up from the couch.

"Mike is coming after he wakes up." Tina told him, "So probably around lunch time."

"As for Sam.. I have no idea." Quinn shrugged.

"Fair enough. I'll be back." Jesse exited the house leaving the girls and Kurt alone for a while.

* * *

**Author Notes: **so i've decided that this will be sorta a part 1 of 2 thing. that means that there will be another inbetween episode chapter xD i hope people liked it! and i hope you all had a happy halloween =]


	9. Chapter 9

**Author's Notes: **so i cut a little bit out of this chapter.. but i hope it's still alright. i'm getting tired and confused over the time. lol. it was 2am now 1am.. either way i'm sleepy. anyways, please leave me some reviews. they mean a lot :)

* * *

Jesse was on cloud nine. Rachel was going to be his girlfriend again! As soon as he left the girls and Kurt alone he couldn't remove the goofy grin from his face. He had tried to hide it when his conversation with Rachel was interrupted but Quinn got it out of him. He excepted a world of teasing ahead of him.

The boy felt way too awake for it only being ten o'clock. Normally his brain didn't function correctly until at least ten thirty. Surprisingly, part of Jesse was wishing that Finn was around so that Rachel could break up with him. He couldn't wait until he was officially allowed to call her his girlfriend again and have everything that came along with that.

Jesse drove home and immediately went to his bathroom first. Before he selected pajamas and clothing for the rest of the weekend he needed a shower. Every morning he needed to shower. He liked feeling clean and generally he used that time to think about things. Plus on school days it helped wake him up.

* * *

Meanwhile, the girls and Kurt were up in Mercedes' room. Quinn and Rachel left the group to go to the guest room where Quinn's belongings were kept. Quinn walked into the room and went straight to the closet. Rachel's eyes wandered around the room. It was very neat.

There was a silence between them. Quinn wasn't entirely sure what to say to Rachel. She looked through her closet for a moment before choosing a pair of light blue pajama pants with little penguins on them and a white t-shirt. "Here. Sorry if the pants are a little long." Quinn finally said as she handed the clothes to Rachel.

"Thank you, I'm sure they'll be fine." Rachel looked down at the clothes in her hands.

Quinn raised an eyebrow after a moment when Rachel merely stared at the pajamas, "Are you sure? Because if you don't like them I'm sure we could get Jesse to bring you one of his shirts." She teased lightly.

Rachel felt her cheeks heat up at the thought of him. She liked the idea but tried to brush it off, "Funny." She declared before leaving for the bathroom.

Quinn walked back into Mercedes' room with a smirk on her face.

Quinn's clothes were slightly big on Rachel but she didn't mind because they were pretty comfy. After changing Rachel went back to Mercedes' room finding her fellow glee club members sitting on the bed. Feeling all eyes on her, she awkwardly sat down on the edge of the bed.

"So what happened last night Berry? Spill!" Kurt's demand broke the silence.

This time Rachel couldn't hide her blush. Tina giggled.

"Well there isn't much to tell.." Rachel tried.

"Oh come on," Quinn stated, "I'll be finding out about it from Jesse. Might as well just tell me now."

"There really isn't much though!" Rachel insisted, "We just fell asleep watching a movie last night. That's all."

Mercedes gave her a look.

"Okay, so he might've tried to kiss me this morning.." She trailed off as the rest of the teenagers started to talk at once.

"Did you let him?" Quinn questioned.

Rachel shook her head, "No... I didn't want to cheat on Finn."

"Speaking of Finn, what are you going to do?" Kurt's question came next.

"I told Jesse that nothing can happen between us until I break up with Finn."

"So you two are really getting back together then?" Tina commented.

Rachel nodded sheepishly, "Yeah, I think so."

They all expressed their positive feelings towards her getting back together with Jesse.

"I'm surprised that you're all so accepting of me and him dating again." Rachel admitted.

"Jesse's my best friend and you make him happy.. so yeah.." Quinn replied nonchalantly.

"Plus when you're with Jesse I find you're less irritable." Mercedes added, "I have no urges to shove a sock down your throat to shut you up."

Rachel's eyes widened in response to Mercedes' statement.

Tina and Kurt laughed seeing Rachel scared, "Don't worry, we wouldn't actually let her do that." Tina assured her.

"Okay then.. thanks, I guess."

Kurt glanced over at the time, "We need to get some breakfast."

He and the girls headed back downstairs to find food.

* * *

After showering, Jesse threw on a pair of plaid pajama pants and a light blue shirt with three penguins on the bottom of it. He grabbed an extra shirt, some deodorant and a tooth brush which he planned on storing in his range rover. The drive back to Mercedes' house seemed to take forever. Jesse's excitement over hanging out with Rachel was working against him.

When he finally arrived back at her house he was met with a disappointing surprise. A car was pulling out of her lane and a clearly visible Finn Hudson was standing on the steps. Jesse parked his car and stepped out, ready to face the boy.

Finn was mid-knock when Jesse came beside him. "St. James." Finn said coldly.

"Hudson."

"Nice pajamas." Finn sneered.

Jesse looked at Finn, "Nice.. Jeans.." He was thankful when the door opened.

"Finn?" Quinn seemed confused.

"Hey! I hope it's alright, we got home early so my mom dropped me off.. Is everyone else still here?" Finn stepped inside.

"Yeah, it's fine. We're all in the kitchen." Quinn shot a look at Jesse who merely sighed.

Finn walked ahead leaving Quinn alone with Jesse for a moment, "I find this amusing."

"I don't see the humor." Jesse snapped.

"No, not that. I mean, well, once again you've managed to match with Rachel again without even trying.." She explained with a small smile before leading him into the kitchen.

Jesse understood what she meant when he saw Rachel wearing the penguin pajama pants.

"Hey babe." Finn pulled Rachel in for a kiss.

Rachel looked completely horrified yet Finn failed to notice. Kurt coughed awkwardly when Finn kissed her. Jesse crossed his arms over his chest and looked the other way. He didn't understand why Rachel was allowing Finn to kiss her after what she said to him.

"Sam will be back soon." Quinn's voice caused Finn to come up for air.

"Sweet." Finn replied, "Food smells good, what are we having?"

"Bacon and eggs." Mercedes told him.

"Except I'm having cereal." Rachel added.

"I don't think we have enough for everyone now.." Tina said.

"I can just have some cereal." Jesse offered.

"Are you sure?" Quinn asked.

He nodded.

"Problem solved then." Finn smiled at Rachel.

* * *

The glee clubbers grabbed their food and then went back into the living room to start up day two of the movie marathons. Jesse and Rachel were left alone in the kitchen to get their cereal.

"We're matching.." He commented, breaking the silence with an obvious fact.

Rachel poured some cereal into a bowl, "I didn't know you liked penguins..."

"I love them," He replied, "I actually gave those pajamas to Quinn.."

There was an uncomfortable silence.

"So.. When are you going to tell him?" Jesse asked while pouring some milk onto his cereal.

"I can't do it.."

"What?" Jesse couldn't hide his upset tone.

"What we did was very irresponsible."

Jesse's eyebrows furrowed, "Irresponsible? Rachel, all we did was fall asleep on the couch!"

"But you tried to kiss me!" Rachel exclaimed dramatically, "And at the time I wanted you to.."

"Then why didn't you let me?"

"I have someone who trusts me. Jesse, I shouldn't have said the things that I told you this morning, I was too caught up in the moment. I- I wasn't thinking clearly."

Jesse frowned, "So that was all a lie then?"

Rachel looked away from him, "Please excuse me, I have to go find my boyfriend.." She said quietly as she tried to walk passed him.

"I don't get why you give Finn so many chances. He's always hurting you and most of the time he doesn't even realize it! I made a mistake, I know that I did, and I know that I broke your heart but you broke mine first, remember? I just don't understand why you feel the need to keep chances away from me. Was I really that horrible to you? Will you not even consider it?"

Rachel's turned her neck to look back at him. His face was full of anger and sadness, with each word he spoke she knew that she was hurting him all over again. "I'm sorry Jesse. The answer's no."

Jesse closed his eyes, he didn't want to watch Rachel walk away from him again.

* * *

Rachel could feel the tears trying to break through. Desperately she shut her eyes, not wanting to start crying in front of everyone. It was a failed attempt. One small tear escaped through. Immediately she wiped it away but that one tear created an escape route for more. And suddenly she felt sick. The lump in her throat grew in a matter of seconds. She felt choked up, her eyes were damp and a headache was forming. No one had noticed her yet, they were all too busy having fun. She needed to leave, she just wanted to be home in the comfort of her own bedroom. If she was going to be miserable she'd much rather feel that way in familiar territory.

A tall boy walked over to her. She didn't even try to cover up her tears, "Finn, can you take me home?"

Finn looked confused, "But I just got here."

"Just take me home." Rachel sighed, "Please."

"Uh, yeah. Okay." Finn nodded, he wrapped an arm around her shoulder as he escorted her out of the house.

The drive home was anything but pleasant. The car was filled with the sound of songs playing on the radio. They masked the sounds of Rachel's silent sobs. Finn had tried to talk to Rachel a couple times during the car ride but he never received a response so he eventually gave up.

Finn pulled into her driveway, "You sure you don't want me to come in? Maybe watching one of your favorite movies will make you feel better? We could watch Grease?" He added, suggesting the only musical that came to his mind.

Rachel shook her head, "N-no thanks." She sniffed while unbuckling her seat belt.

"I guess I'll see you at school then?"

Rachel stepped out of the car.

"Rachel?"

She looked back at him.

"I love you."

Rachel smiled weakly, "Good bye, Finn."


	10. Chapter 10

**Author's Notes: **hey guys! i'm really excited, the glee christmas songs leaked and i'm in love with them. i can't wait until i can write the christmas episode chapter.. i already have so many ideas! december needs to hurry up and get here! lol also, what did you guys think of never been kissed? pretty crazy right? finally, i hope that everyone is taking time to think of the veterns and are all having a good remembrance/veterns day :) ps, i may have added a certain quote from lea's twitter.. ;)

* * *

It was Sunday night. Jesse hadn't been able to make himself go out trick or treating with his friends. Instead he stayed home, spending the day lying in bed and listening to depressing music. Jesse's stay at Mercedes' house had been cut short after Rachel rejected him. He ended up leaving seconds after she did.

He was crushed. His heart was breaking all over again. Jesse didn't know what to do with himself. Last year during his break up with Rachel he had tried to become frozen again. Now that his feelings were back he didn't know if he'd be able to do that again. He dreaded the thought of attending glee club tomorrow. He couldn't go. He couldn't face her. It would be too hard.

Maybe he could skip tomorrow? Pretend to be sick? Of course that would work better if he had parents around to write his teacher a note explaining why he had been absent from school.

His phone buzzed. Jesse's eyes stayed on the ceiling, he blindly grabbed at the cell phone on his bedside table. The light from the phone was a shock to his eyes, he had been in the dark all day, oh he felt pathetic.

His eyes slowly adjusted so he read the text message.

_Are you okay?_

It was from Quinn.

_Why wouldn't I be? It's not like my heart's been ripped out of my chest and stomped on.. Again.._

A few minutes passed before he received her reply.

_Do you want to talk about it?_

Jesse's fingers brushed against his iPhone's keypad, _No._

Quinn was quick. This time it was a phone call.

"I said I don't want to talk about it." Jesse muttered into the phone.

"Since when do I do what you say? I hate following your orders.. Or should I say lies?"

"I'm really not in the mood for this."

"Neither am I, I hate seeing my best friend being all broody and miserable."

"I'm in love with her Quinn." He sounded defeated.

"I know.." Quinn said softly.

Jesse sighed, "I thought we were getting back together but then after Finn came back she said that she was too caught up in the moment.." He paused, "She chose him."

"She'll come around."

"What if she doesn't? Maybe I should just give up!" He said dramatically.

"If the situation were reversed would you want her to give up on you?"

"She wouldn't have to. If I was forced to choose, it would _always_ be her."

* * *

With much pleading from Quinn, Jesse showed up at McKinley High on Monday morning. She escorted him to each of his classes, she said that she was just trying to help (which he knew she was) however he also knew that she was doing this to make sure that he didn't try to skip. On the way to one of his classes Jesse saw her. Clearly, Karofsky and his friend had slushied another innocent victim. The victim was someone Jesse recognized, he couldn't place the name but he knew the face because the boy was in his biology class. Slushie dripped from his hair as he tried to wipe it away from his glasses. His books were scattered on the floor, until Rachel picked them up. She smiled at him, telling him that he needed to wash his clothes immediately before they stained. She then told him what stain remover to use, obviously experienced, and after handing him his books she walked away in the direction of her own class. The slushied boy and Jesse both watched her walk away. When she disappeared down the hall Jesse sighed and walked on with Quinn. He didn't notice that the other boy was still staring in her direction.

* * *

It was time for her free period. Rachel didn't know where to go. Right away she knew that going to the auditorium was a definite no. She couldn't bring herself to go see Jesse. She hated herself for rejecting him. She hated that she was still in love with him. She hated him for making her feel this way.

Rachel was beginning to lose count over how many times she had forgiven Finn because she was too scared to lose him. She continued to forgive him even if he wasn't deserving of her forgiveness. She stayed with him because he made her feel secure. Rachel's acting abilities weren't good enough to cover up the insecurities that she tried to hide. Those insecurities about herself stayed when she was with Finn however when she was dating him she did feel better about the whole high school experience. Dating Finn gave her someone who cared about her, gave people a reason to respect her and it stopped some of the torment she had been forced to endure.

Rachel wanted to go back to Jesse but she was too scared of the consequences. Glee club was all she had. If her and Finn were to split up again the glee club would naturally take his side. The glee clubbers found her ambitious ways to be annoying. Everyone liked Finn more than her, he was the popular yet lovable jock.

However, she knew that she'd be lying to herself if she tried to pretend that, that was the only reason she rejected Jesse. She was scared to get close to him again. The last time they dated she trusted him. She didn't think she'd be able to survive if she gave him her heart again only to result in more heartbreak. How was she supposed to trust him after what happened last time? Their whole relationship had been part of a plot to get her to meet Shelby which worked out _so_ well considering Shelby chose Beth over her.

Rachel could feel her eyes filling with water but she refused to cry. Not here, not now.

She ended up spending her free period outside, sitting at one of the picnic tables. The air was getting colder with the fall weather but it gave her a chance to clear her head and to prepare herself for facing Jesse if he chose to show up to glee club.

* * *

Mr. Schuester was revisiting one of his old lesson plans, boys versus girls. Jesse hadn't been a part of it last year but from what he had heard both groups did really well. He would've been much more thrilled with the idea if he wasn't so down in the dumps because of Rachel. When they split up into two teams he listened quietly as all of the other boys started to discuss ideas. Jesse and Kurt shared a look, neither of them looked happy. No one else noticed.

* * *

"The boys beat us the last time we competed against them and we've gotta bring the noise _hard_ this time." Mercedes stated.

"To be fair they didn't officially beat us. We got busted for vitamin D posession before the vote." Quinn pointed out.

"Wait, something's definitely wrong. Why isn't Rachel talking?" Santana questioned.

"Yeah, she should totally be bossing us around right now." Brittany added.

Rachel was sitting behind them, carefully sewing something for their costumes. Through out the whole meeting she had kept quiet. Honestly, she couldn't bring herself to deal with their incompetence. She didn't have it in her to order them around in an attempt to make them be better. "The idea of the assignment was to do the opposite of what we normally do. I'm just trying to stick to the lesson plan which is proving nearly impossible since you're gluing those sequins on backwards.." She lied smoothly. "SPIES!"

Rachel was thankful when Puck and Artie came into the room. It took the previous attention away from her. She fell silent once more, looking at the needle and fabric in her hands. She couldn't wait until this week was over.

* * *

_"Start me up! We're half way there, whoa-oh, livin' on a prayer."_

During the girls' mash up of Start Me Up/Livin' On a Prayer Jesse tried to keep his eyes on Quinn, Santana or Brittany. Basically anyone but Rachel. Keeping his eyes off of Rachel was incredibly hard for Jesse. She looked insanely sexy in her leather outfit and her voice was amazing, as usual, but watching her reminded him of what he couldn't have.

* * *

Jesse knew that his mash up with the boys of Stop! In The Name Of Love/Free Your Mind won but not for reasons he approved of. It was obvious that they had won because of the fact that the song was used for an apology. Jesse completely believed that Coach Beiste deserved an apology after what the other idiots in the glee club had done but he disliked that he was classified in the same way as them when he didn't participate in the cruel/disturbing behavior. At first his reaction was full of amusement, all he could think of was that he was proud that he didn't need to find ways to 'cool off' although the more he thought about it the more he realized how much it would hurt their coach if she found out. This was proven true when she tried to quit. In the end Jesse was happy that they had changed her mind on that. He just wished that the other boys, and Tina, wouldn't have came up with that idea in the first place.

* * *

After a week of avoiding Rachel, Jesse found himself going to a McKinley High victory party. He hated the idea of celebrating Finn Hudson and his accomplishments however Sam and Mike had suggested that he should stop by for a while. Quinn didn't completely agree with the boys. She understood that Jesse needed to have some fun but she didn't like the idea of him going out to get drunk which she knew would happen because that's how those parties always went.

Jesse and Mike walked in with Sam whose arm was wrapped around Quinn, who was just there to make an appearance considering she was head cheerleader again. Mike and Sam were greeted by their fellow teammates and a few Cheerios flocked around Quinn. Jesse shoved his hands into his pockets while he scanned the room. Loud music was blarring from speakers set up around the house. A large football player walked over to him, Dave Karofsky.

"What are you doing here glee loser?" Karofsky snarled over the music.

"I came with them." Jesse motioned to Mike, Sam and Quinn, "I'm just here to have a good time."

Karofsky glared at Jesse, he took in his appearance automatically knowing that he could beat up the boy if he wanted. He also noticed that Jesse seemed unafraid of him. Karofsky thought to himself for a moment before speaking again, "A good time huh? Do you want a beer?"

"Sure." Jesse replied with a nod.

Quinn glanced over to see Jesse follow Karofsky into the kitchen. "I'm worried about him." She whispered to Sam.

"He'll be fine. Jesse's a big boy." Sam told her with a reassuring smile.

Quinn tried to believe Sam but he didn't know Jesse like she did. Sam didn't know how torn up over Rachel he was.

The first beer felt refreshing. The house was hot enough to give a desert a run for it's money so his throat gladly welcomed the cold liquid. The next beer tasted just as great. The one after that, Jesse barely noticed.

Jesse grimaced when Karofsky, his new drinking buddy, belched loudly. How uncivilized.

"St. James, what are you doing here?" Santana came over to the two boys.

"What does it look like?" He brought the beer bottle back up to his lips for another swig.

Jesse's rude tone didn't phase her. She grabbed the bottle from his hand and took a long drink. "You need to loosen up." She said seductively.

"You can loosen me up baby." Karofsky grabbed her ass.

Santana ignored it. She slipped her hand into Jesse's and dragged him away from Karofsky.

As Santana led Jesse upstairs he heard Karofsky call out, "Atta boy!"

Santana brought Jesse into one of the bedrooms. As soon as they entered the room she pushed him up against the door, locking it while she attacked his neck with kisses. Jesse took another drink of his beer while the Latina grinded up against him. His eyes closed when her lips continued to crash against his neck. A small moan of pleasure escaped from his mouth.

"Someone's feeling better.." She smirked between kisses after he moaned. Her hands wandered his body finding their way to his belt.

It was at that moment when he was brought back to reality. "Santana." He said sternly, "Enough."

She began to fumble with the belt, ignoring his comment. She undid the belt and was ready to unbutton his pants when he tried again, "I said stop!" He was louder this time. He pushed her away slightly so he could get out of her grip.

"God, what's your problem?" She seemed hurt that he rejected her.

"My problem?" Jesse repeated, "You need to gain some self respect!"

"Why should I? No one else gives me any! No guy at least." She shouted angrily.

"Maybe you shouldn't be looking for a guy." Jesse yelled back, "I know for a fact that there's a pretty blonde Cheerio downstairs who thinks the world of you."

Santana looked away from him, completely flustered she stormed out of the room.

Jesse sighed before finishing his beer. He set the empty bottle down on a dresser before exiting the room. He made his way downstairs, Quinn and Sam went over to him. "I'm leaving." By the sound of his voice neither friend tried to disagree. Sam quickly found Mike and then Quinn, being the only one who didn't drink, drove them home.


	11. Chapter 11

**Author's Notes: **well, this isn't my best chapter. sorry but my mind is all asldkahlsdja. i'm going to see harry potter tomorrow and to be honest i can't really focus on anything. lol. reviews are appreciated.

* * *

_"Mr. Schuester, you look a little green."_

This week Mr. Schuester had to leave early to go home and rest. He was sick. During the first day of his absence Rachel tried to take over the glee club however that didn't end well. It was clear to the students that they needed a substitute and thanks to Kurt, they found one.

The students were all waiting to see who their substitute would be. Puck was buttering the floor while Artie, Mercedes and Tina decided that they would switch names for the day.

Rachel rushed into the room, only to end up falling on the floor. Jesse cringed. His fellow glee clubbers laughed at Rachel's fall and Puck was glad to see that his buttered floor worked. Instinctively he wanted to go make sure that she was alright but every part of his brain told him that he needed to stay put. Rachel announced that she was alright but Jesse felt bad that no one had actually asked her. Even Finn, her so called boyfriend, hadn't tried to check on her.

Jesse's mood changed when the substitute teacher finally arrived. He grinned when she slid across the buttered floor. This woman was definitely different. She came in and introduced herself as Ms Holiday. He could feel himself liking her already. He sensed that she would be a nice break from Schuester.

Ms Holiday began socializing with the students until Rachel interrupted her.

"Okay, no! We can't just goof off all day. We have to write a set list for Sectionals!" Rachel told them.

"You're right. What songs would you like to do?" Ms Holiday asked.

The kids stared at her in confusion.

"Oh, don't get asked that question much do we?" She commented.

"Ms Holiday's right. Mr Schuester's set list sometimes seems like he hasn't listened to the radio since the 80s." Kurt stated.

"He never listens to what I have to say." Puck admitted and then went on to explain how he wanted to try singing Cee Lo's new song.

"Cee Lo! That's what I'm talking about!" Ms Holiday exclaimed excitedly.

A few of the glee club members cheered.

"Okay, excuse me, what would you know about Cee Lo 'cause you're like forty?" Santana questioned.

"Top forty sweetcheeks." Ms Holiday smirked, "Hit it!"

The band starting playing Forget You.

Jesse began to tap along with the beat. A smile formed on his lips when Kurt got up to dance with Ms Holiday. The smile grew larger when the Cheerios started singing back up. Soon enough Jesse found himself dancing along in his chair with the rest of the glee clubbers (with the exception of Rachel). During Artie and Mercedes' solo, Jesse started to sing along too. He got up from his chair and joined the rest of the group who were all dancing in the middle of the room.

The song made Jesse realize something. Ever since the egging incident he had spent his time moping around over Rachel. Back then and even now, she chose Finn. Perhaps it was time for Jesse to accept that fact and move on. Maybe he needed to forget her. He knew that he wasn't over her but obsessing over the girl wasn't going to help. He wasn't going to let Rachel consume his thoughts anymore. It was time for a change.

* * *

Glee was finished for the day and the members were all leaving. Jesse had been on his way out when he realized that he forgot his sweater. When he walked back to the choir room he found Puck and Artie. "Hey, I forgot my sweater.." Jesse mumbled as he picked up a black sweater off of a chair.

"St Douche, I'm glad that you came back. I don't think my fist has been properly introduced with your face." During glee rehearsal Puck threw some nasty comments in Jesse's direction. Now that Ms Holiday wasn't around Puck could speak his mind. Seeing Jesse reminded him of the egging incident and how he had never been able to give the jerk what he deserved.

"Puck.." Artie scolded, "It's alright, Jesse's cool."

"He egged Berry. He's the enemy." Puck snapped.

"That was last year! He's on our side now." Artie tried to calm Puck down.

"Why?"

Suddenly Jesse realized that Puck had been in Juvie when he shared his story about why he was back in high school. Before Artie could answer Puck, Jesse did instead. Jesse apologized for what he did last year and explained that he did regret hurting Rachel. He then continued to tell him that he lost his credits so he needed to redo his senior year.

Artie liked Jesse. Jesse helped him with his country music assignment and Artie truly believed that he was sorry for what happened last year. He was interested in having a friendship with the older boy.

"Whatever, let's go get some waffles." Puck told Artie, clearly still annoyed with Jesse. He didn't trust him.

"I like waffles."

Puck and Artie stared at Jesse.

"You like waffles?" Puck questioned.

Jesse nodded, "Love them."

Artie glanced from Puck to Jesse.

"A lot of people like waffles.." Puck tried to brush the comment off.

"I have a waffle maker."

This was the selling point for Puck. "You mean.. You can make homemade waffles?"

Jesse grinned, "Yup, whenever I want."

"Okay you're in. Can we go see your waffle maker now? I want to make a waffle sandwich!"

"Waffle sandwich?" Jesse repeated.

"Two homemade waffles with an Eggo waffle in the middle." Artie confirmed with a smile.

"And lots of syrup!" Puck added.

"Alright then, let's go get you your waffle sandwich." Jesse left the choir room with the other boys.

* * *

After hanging out with Puck and Artie, Jesse realized something. Throughout his high school experience he has never really had any guy friends. For example, right now he spends almost all of his time with Quinn and with Quinn comes frequent appearances by Mercedes, Tina and Kurt. Jesse loves Quinn and he's grateful that her friends have come to accept him however sometimes he feels awkward when their conversation changes to one about fashion or boys. He knew that he had new friendships with Sam and Mike however they were always with their girlfriends and when they weren't conversations usually led back to them. Artie and Puck were both single like Jesse. Artie could relate to what Jesse was going through. When Jesse helped Artie with his country music assignment the boy had admitted to wanting to use the song to get Tina back. Tina was dating Mike, Rachel was dating Finn. Both Jesse and Artie wanted their girlfriends back and even though Puck wouldn't admit it Jesse had a feeling that Puck still had a thing for Quinn.

Jesse was thankful that waffles could bring people together.

* * *

The next day Jesse wheeled Artie through the hallway as they walked with Puck. The boy from Jesse's biology class got in their way, "Move geek." Puck snarled as he pushed the boy against the lockers. Artie immediately scolded Puck's behavior while Jesse glanced back at his scared classmate, "Sorry man." He received no reply so the boys continued walking. They were on their way to the auditorium for today's glee meeting.

Quinn was already in the auditorium sitting beside Kurt, she waved at him. Jesse waved back but didn't go try to sit with her. Instead he stayed back and sat beside Artie. Puck drifted slightly and ended up sitting beside Santana. Jesse looked over at them, Santana met his gaze and glared for a moment before deciding to ignore him.

Jesse and Artie chatted casually while they waited for the performance to begin. The spotlight turned on revealing Rachel and Ms Holiday. Jesse couldn't hide his smile when they started to sing Nowadays/Hot Honey Rag. Their performance was fun to watch. Jesse cheered along with the other glee clubbers and he had to admit, he enjoyed the outfit choice.

* * *

"Berry's got some hot legs." Puck commented as he exited the school with Artie and Jesse. Glee club had just ended and most of the students were still discussing Rachel and Ms Holiday's performance.

"True dat." Artie agreed.

"Mhmm." Jesse added.

"It's a shame that she wants to wait until marriage. Such a waste."

Jesse looked at Puck, "How do you know that?"

"Finn complains about it all the time in the locker room." Puck explained, "It's pretty pathetic. He was always asking to touch her boobs and one time when she actually let him, he ranted on about how awesome it was for weeks."

Artie laughed, "Wow."

"I can't say much, she never let me touch her boobs." Puck sighed.

It was now Jesse's turn to laugh, "I never even had to ask." He said with a smug grin.

The smug grin stayed on his face when he received praise from the other two boys but they soon went their separate ways for the day.

Jesse was starting up his range rover when he noticed that Rachel was standing in front of the school by herself. He looked at the digital clock which caused confusion. Rachel's dads were at least fifteen minutes late. They were never late. Jesse pulled out of his parking spot and drove in front of the school. He put his window down, "Hey, where are your dads?"

"Um, not here yet." Rachel answered.

"Did they call or anything?"

Rachel shook her head, "I was just about to text them.."

"Tell them that you've found a ride home."

Jesse reached over and opened the passenger side's door.

"Jesse, you don't need to.."

"Just get in." He told her, "It's fine, really."

Rachel slowly walked towards the open door. She was hesitant but she followed his order. "Thanks." She mumbled as she buckled herself in.

Jesse began driving away from the school, "You're welcome."

There was an awkward silence. Usually this would be a rare thing with Rachel Berry however lately whenever she was around him she never knew what to say, especially after what happened at Mercedes'.

"That was some performance." Jesse finally spoke.

"You liked it?" She asked timidly.

"Of course. The song selection was good," He paused, "And you looked happy."

Rachel looked out the window, "It was really fun. I'm glad that Ms Holiday gave me permission to sing it."

"I am too." Jesse agreed, "It was nice to see your smile."

Rachel tried to hide the blush that was forming. She was relieved when they arrived in her drive way. "Well, thanks again. I'll see you at school." She rambled quickly before stepping out of the vehicle. Jesse watched her run into her house. He laughed a little to himself before leaving.


	12. Chapter 12

**Author's Notes:**sorry for the confusion/wait over chapter 12. i've been swamped with homework and tests. school is taking over my life :(

* * *

"But I hate weddings!"

Jesse's voice rang loudly through the halls of McKinley High School as the curly haired boy escorted his blonde friend towards the exit after glee club rehearsal. Kurt and Finn had surprised the glee club with news about their parents' wedding. Jesse had an unpopular opinion on the event.

"How can you hate weddings!" Quinn exclaimed, "They're always so lovely."

Jesse groaned, "I don't want to go!"

"You have to!" Quinn felt like she was talking to a child.

"You can't make me!" was his reply with a quick but dramatic shake of his head,

"But Mr. Schuester can." She pointed out and smirked, knowing that she was right.

He rolled his eyes, "Even if it is a glee wedding, I still don't think I'll be wanted there. I'm happy for Burt and Carole but they're Finn's parents and Finn hates me, remember?"

"You're the one who's forgetting one major detail," Quinn stated, "They're Kurt's parents too. He's your friend Jesse. He wants you there."

"I guess I have grown rather attached to the little guy.." he admitted in defeat, lightly tugging at the sleeves of his leather jacket.

Jesse and Quinn reached the door, he held it open for her while she walked outside.

"He's going to have so much fun dressing you." Quinn giggled.

"Oh God,"

Quinn flashed a stern look in his direction.

"Oh _gosh._" Jesse corrected himself to gain her approval, "We'll be shopping for days looking for tuxedos and dresses won't we." He looked very disturbed at the thought.

"Actually you're in luck, Kurt already has the tuxes and dresses picked out. We just need to go in for a fitting." Quinn explained.

Jesse felt relieved, "Oh, well that won't be so bad then. I hope."

* * *

It was their free period. For the first time in at least a week Rachel decided to go to the auditorium. Even though she had let Jesse drive her home after glee rehearsal last week she had avoided him. She was tired of that. She missed him and his company. She hoped that after what she did at Mercedes' house he'd still be able to consider her his friend.

Using all of her courage Rachel walked into the silent auditorium. At first when she heard no singing or piano playing she feared that he might not be there. However she soon noticed a figure sitting in the first row. It was him. When she got closer she was shocked to see a Nintendo DS in his hand and headphones in his ears.

Jesse's eyes drifted from the game when he saw Rachel. "Hey." he said as he pulled a headphone out of his ear.

"Hey.." Rachel replied awkwardly, still staring at the DS.

The boy's eyes drifted back to his game which he resumed playing.

"What are you doing?" Rachel asked unsettled.

"Playing Pokemon." Jesse replied as if it was something he always did.

"Since when do you play video games?" She didn't even bother trying to hide her confusion. When she had dated Jesse he had never expressed any interest in video games.

"Since last weekend." He pressed the 'A' button a few times, "Noah and Artie introduced me to a world I've been missing. I don't know how I survived my childhood without them. Although I'm slightly disappointed that they wouldn't let me try a Mario game.. Noah said that I wasn't ready for that yet.. However Artie let me borrow this DS and Pokemon Diamond to start off my gaming experience so it's all good."

Rachel blinked. She couldn't figure out what the most shocking part of his explanation was. The fact that he didn't call Noah, Puck, that he knew who Mario was or that he was actually interested in playing video games. "Well that's great.." Rachel had heard rumors that Jesse had began to hang out with Noah and Artie but she hadn't known that they were friendly enough with each other to hang out off school grounds. She felt a pang of jealously. Rachel had known the majority of the glee club members since kindergarten yet she had only been invited over to one their house's once and it was only because it was a group thing. Jesse had been public enemy number one but thanks to his friendship with Quinn Fabray he was slowly winning over the acceptance of everyone else. Why was he able to get it while she wasn't?

Jesse's eyes stayed focused on the game in his hand, "Marvelous, Luxio evolved to level 21." He said to himself.

Rachel fell into the seat beside him. She glanced down at the DS screen, she felt herself smiling when he tilted it over to one side so that she could see it better.

"What are you listening to?" She asked while grabbing the headphone that he wasn't using. She carefully placed it in her ear and before he could answer her question she sighed happily. "I love this song."

_'Fingers that ache to intertwine  
Warmest of chords, but missing tune  
Where is the laugh to echo mine  
Send it soon'_

He was listening to Unexpressed by Gavin Creel from the musical It's Only Life. They sat in a companionable silence while they listened to the rest of the song. When it finished Rachel took his iPod from it's spot on his lap. She began to scroll through his thousands of songs. One of the many things she missed about Jesse was his incredible music collection. The boy liked practically every genre of music out there so his iTunes had a lot to offer a fellow music lover like herself.

"Are you looking for anything in particular?" Jesse asked after a moment.

"No, not really." She replied, going to the recently played playlist. "You've been listening to ABBA?" She giggled.

"Yeah." He admitted with a light laugh, "I've been in a major 70's and 80's kick lately."

"They're such a guilty pleasure."

"I know." He agreed, "To be honest I think it'd be entertaining if you and the other girls sang one of their songs for glee club."

"Well, if Mr Schuester ever uses a lesson plan involving 70's and 80's songs I'll keep that in mind."

Jesse smiled at her.

"Of course, if the girls sing ABBA then I think the guys should sing something by Michael Jackson or the Bee Gees."

Jesse should've expected the catch. He laughed, "As tempting as that sounds I don't think that we'd be able to hit those high notes. My falsetto isn't very appealing."

Rachel laughed at him as she continued to choose songs for them to listen to. "I'm sure you guys would sound fine. If not it would at least be highly amusing."

"Yeah, I'm sure it would be." He rolled his eyes.

"So are you excited for Carole and Burt's wedding?" Rachel asked in a casual manner.

"Not really." Jesse replied bluntly.

She sensed his change in personality. He was still focused on his game but he suddenly seemed tense. "Oh. Why? I'm sure it'll be a lot of fun."

"I just don't like weddings." He snapped.

Jesse closed his eyes in frustration knowing that he shouldn't have snapped at her. He shut the DS and finally looked at her. "I'm sorry. To me weddings are basically the beginning of the end. My parents are living proof of that. Dad's been married and remarried at least five times now. In my opinion marriage shouldn't be needed. If you love someone then that's all that matters, making it official and putting it on paper shouldn't be expected."

"It's funny how so many people think we're practically the same person because we're actually very different." Rachel commented, Jesse could tell that she didn't approve of his opinion, "I happen to love weddings. I've been planning mine since I was a little girl. I look forward to marrying someone and sharing that special moment with them and all of my closest friends."

"Hey, I said that I didn't like weddings." Another tiny smile appeared, "I never said that I wouldn't make an exception if that's what my future wife wanted."

Rachel looked away shyly, unable to hide her smile. "She's going to have you wrapped around her finger isn't she?"

"You have no idea." He chuckled before opening the DS back up.

* * *

Jesse, Artie and Puck were the only people left in the choir room. The glee clubbers had just been practicing for Burt and Carole's wedding. Jesse had spent the past hour watching Finn swing Rachel around while singing Marry You which only reminded him of when he had done the same thing. His body was flowing with jealously, he hated it. Jesse could sense that Puck was enjoying this rehearsal as much as he was. Puck was being forced to watch Quinn and Sam sing together. It was obvious that he wasn't a fan. To make matters worse, because there was an uneven amount of girls and boys Jesse was told to dance down the aisle with Santana and Puck. Normally this wouldn't be a problem but considering what happened, or didn't happen, with Santana he felt awkward about it.

"That was a waste of time." Puck complained, "I'd rather poke my eyes out with a fork than watch that douche sing with Quinn for a second longer."

"And then there's Finn." Jesse said with distaste, "I'm pretty sure he and Sam are competing over who's king of the douchebags."

"They're both winning." Puck groaned, "I just hate that guy."

"I know how you feel buddy." Jesse sighed, "Actually, I'm pretty sure I have a song that really describes how we're feeling. It's from A Very Potter Sequel."

"What?" Artie asked, intrigued by the mention of Potter, "Is that a Harry Potter musical?"

Jesse nodded. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his iPod touch. "One second.." He mumbled as he unlocked the device and began to scroll through the songs. Finding the song 'Guys Like Potter' from A Very Potter Sequel he turned up the volume to full blast and let the song play through.

_but there will always be guys like potter_

_who'll quench the flame like it's a game with drops of water_

_he'll never ever think her perfect as i thought her_

"That's deep." Puck commented.

Jesse nodded.

"Dude, you've got to show me the rest of this musical. Harry Potter is freakin' amazing." Artie declared.

"It's all on youtube." Jesse replied.

"Find me a computer. Right now."

Puck grinned at Artie's enthusiasm, "Well you heard the man!"

"Okay, okay, let's go then. Shall we?"

Artie nodded eagerly which resulted in Puck wheeling him out of the choir room with Jesse at their side.

* * *

The next day the boys were in the auditorium. They had some time to kill before glee club rehearsal. Jesse sat down at the drumset. Artie had his bass and Puck was holding his guitar. Once they were all ready Jesse began singing.

_"Remember that time?  
When you wouldn't talk to me?  
No you wouldn't talk to me  
yesterday._

We were gettin' along!  
We had that little dance-y thing!  
Well here's a song I sing  
my way,"

Artie sang next.

_"It was gonna be fine.  
But you didn't wanna be,  
be the man who'd be with me-  
no way._

But now you sayin' it's time-  
Why you gotta be like that?  
I don't like the way you act  
around me."

Puck was rockin' out on his guitar when he took his turn to sing the chorus.

"So baby come on, come on...

Oh don't you tell me to go,  
and say "I'm the one,"  
d-d-do you think I'm dumb?  
Sorry- did I just stutter?

Won't tell you what you know,  
but this is the end...  
You were never my friend,  
you were never my-  
you were never my lover!"

The three boys sang the rest of the song together.

"Remember that night?  
When I saw you tremblin' there?  
I remembered, "I don't care,"  
'bout you.

I'm rememberin' how  
you thought you were at the top,  
well I think we're better off  
without you!

And I got your number-  
and I don't mean on my phone;  
would've already just thrown it out,  
if I'd known about  
the way you'd bitch and moan,

you remember the way-  
how you were way outta line?  
Well now you're way outta time!  
So tell me what you want on your tombstone!

Come on, come on...

Oh don't you tell me to go,  
and say "I'm the one,"  
we're dur-dur-dur done!  
'Scuse me, did I just stutter?

Won't tell you what you know,  
but this is the end...  
You were never my friend,  
you were never my-  
you were never my lover!

It's too bad you a loser.  
Too bad you waste my time.  
Good thing that I'm around  
to keep your ass in line!"

"... You were never my-  
you were never my lover!" Jesse finished the song with a huge grin on his face.

"YEAH!" Puck cheered with excitement while giving Artie a fist bump.

"That was sick!" Artie agreed with some excitement of his own.

Quinn, who had been standing at the entrance of the auditorium listening to their performance, entered the scene, "Did someone say Quinn Fabray?" She exclaimed in a loud boastful voice in an attempt to mimic one of Draco's lines from the musical.

Jesse immediately started laughing.

"She's seen it too!" Artie questioned eagerly.

"Of course!" Jesse replied.

"I always knew she had good taste." Puck grinned at her.

"Was there ever any doubt?" Her eyes stayed on him.

"Well..." He shrugged his shoulder jokingly which resulted in her rolling her eyes.

"We watched both of them last night!" Artie told her, "I'm still on a major high from them."

"Understandable. Your performance of Stutter sounded great!"

"Thanks" They said in unison.

"It was nice to sing something other than Marry You." Puck added, the other boys nodded.

"Speaking of that, we really should go to the choir room. Mr. Schue is probably looking for us." Quinn stated.

Puck nodded, "Okay."

The group of teenagers left the auditorium happily quoting AVPM and AVPS.

* * *

It was no secret to the glee club that Kurt was being bullied however this week they learned just how bad things were. Karofsky, one of the football players was giving him an especially hard time. Mike, Artie, Sam and Puck had confronted him in the locker room but so far it didn't seem to be making a difference. When Jesse was putting his books away in his locker he spotted Karofsky walking over to Kurt. Jesse quickly sped over to them. "Hey Kurt." He said with a friendly tone of voice however his eyes focused on Karofsky which resulted in a glare forming on his face.

"Jesse." Kurt was startled to see his friend but Jesse knew that he was thankful for his sudden appearance. It was easy to see the that smaller boy was terrified.

"You're the guy from the party." Karofsky was beginning to remember who Jesse was.

He nodded, "Yup. That's me."

Kurt looked at him confused, "What party?"

Jesse shook his head, "Doesn't matter. Um, I think we should be getting to class."

"It all makes sense now." Karofsky's voice boomed through out the hallway, it caught the attention of other students in the hall, "No wonder you rejected Santana, you didn't want to cheat on your boyfriend, did you?" His tone was vicious but Jesse didn't flinch.

"At least she wanted to have sex with me." Jesse replied harshly, "I didn't see her knocking on your door."

"If I wanted to bang her than I would!" Karofsky glanced around nervously at the people staring. Suddenly he regretted talking so loud. His plan was working against him.

"Sure you would buddy. You keep telling yourself that."

Karofsky poked Jesse's chest, "Shut your mouth fag."

"Make me." Jesse pushed Karofsky's finger away.

"Next time you won't be so lucky." Karofsky said before walking away. There was a teacher nearby so he didn't want to chance punching him. After what happened in the locker room he didn't think getting in another fight would help his case.

Kurt and Jesse were safe for now.

"Jesse, I-" Kurt was speechless, "Thank you so much."

"It's no big deal." Jesse replied, "I've got your back."

"It is a big deal. I really appreciate it." Kurt breathed deeply, trying to calm himself.

"You should get to class." Jesse told him, "If he gives you any trouble you let me know alright?"

Kurt nodded, "I will. See you at glee rehearsal."

"Mhmm. Later." Jesse said before returning to his locker to pick up the books for his next class.

* * *

It was time for their rehearsals to be put to the test. It was time for the glee wedding. Jesse and the rest of the glee club members were clad in the proper attire. The boys were all dressed in tuxedos and the girls were in matching red dresses. The teenagers were in a back room, getting ready for their performance. Jesse tried to fix his tie one final time. He nearly choked himself from pulling it so hard when he saw Rachel enter the room.

She walked over to him with a timid smile on her face, "Hey, well don't you look handsome."

"You look incredible." Jesse said, not caring if it was inappropriate or not, "Red is definitely your color. Although so is blue and green..." He let his voice trail off and he grinned when he saw her blush.

"You're too kind." She said, still blushing.

"What can I say? You're a gorgeous girl, you deserve every compliment you get."

"Thanks.." She said sheepishly. She was scared that if her blush didn't go away soon her face would be as red as her dress.

"We'll I guess I should finish getting ready." He told her, "This hair doesn't become perfect by itself."

She giggled, "Yeah, I should go find Finn anyway. See how he's holding up."

Jesse's smile disappeared. He nodded awkwardly, "Yeah. You probably should. Um, if you'll excuse me." He marched passed her and off to the bathroom.

Rachel sighed slightly. She also left the room and found Finn talking to Santana. Neither of them looked pleased to see her.

"Hey. What are you guys doing?" She asked nervously.

"Nothing. I was just leaving." Santana said coldly.

Finn said nothing once Santana left.

"Aren't you going to tell me how pretty I look?" Rachel asked, trying to regain her confidence.

"You look amazing."

"What?"

"I.. I just really love you."

"I love you too." Rachel couldn't believe that she said that. It was her first time saying it to Finn and she hated that it came out. It felt forced and even though he didn't know it, it felt like she was only saying it to reassure herself.

* * *

The ceremony went incredibly well. Burt and Carole were the happiest anyone has ever seen them. They were all at the reception now. Everyone was dancing and having a good time. Everyone except for Jesse who was sitting alone at one of the tables, sipping some sort of fancy juice he assumed Kurt had picked for the wedding.

"Come dance with me."

Jesse looked up to see Rachel standing in front of him.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" It's not that he didn't want to dance with her he just felt that it might be weird with Finn and everyone else around.

"You're my friend and I want to dance with you. I don't see anything wrong with that." Rachel offered a reassuring smile. She held out her hand for him to take.

"Fine." Jesse gave in and took her hand. She led him out to the dance floor, "You know I don't like dancing though."

"I'm beginning to wonder if there's anything that you do like." She giggled as she put her arms around his neck. She liked that she didn't have to stretch to reach him. He was just the right height.

"I like you." Jesse said softly, he held her waist.

"Good." Rachel didn't look away this time, "I like you too."


	13. Chapter 13

**Author's Notes:**alright guys, i'm finally all caught up with my chapters. i hope everyone enjoys this =] please remember to review!

* * *

It was their first glee club practice since Kurt left for Dalton academy. Everyone could feel that something was different but for the sake of the team they tried to stay focused. Mr. Schuester entered the room and Rachel began talking about what she wanted to do for Sectionals with Finn. Things started to get out of hand when Mr. Schue denied her wishes and suggested that Sam and Quinn should sing instead. Quinn directed a harsh comment toward Rachel which caused Jesse to give her an unamused glare however he wasn't able to say anything because soon enough Santana was starting a fight with Rachel.

"You are such a hypocrite." Jesse heard Santana say.

"Like you even know what that means." Rachel shot back at Finn's defence.

"It means that your boyfriend is full of crap, hobbit." Santana replied harshly.

Rachel stood up and turned to face her, "You know what? Ever since the wedding you've been up my butt and I'm sick of it."

"Come on Rachel, she's not worth it." Finn finally spoke up.

"Oh really? 'Cause that's not what you thought last year in that motel room." Santana looked up at Rachel, "That's right Yentel, your sweetheart? He's been lying to you 'cause he and I totally got it on last year. Unlike St. Douche, Finn did the smart thing and hooked up with me."

Mr. Schuester yelled at them again but no one noticed. Everything one was too shocked by Santana's words to even attempt to process what Mr. Schuester was asking. Jesse watched Rachel leave the room. She was crushed. First the news about not getting any solos and now the secret about Santana and Finn was out. He didn't know how much more of this crap she could take.

* * *

Rachel couldn't remember what happiness felt like. Happiness seemed like a distant memory. It seemed like a best friend who had moved away without any notice. All she could think about was Finn, Santana and Mr. Schuester who had all ruined her life in a matter of minutes. Santana's words stung the most. The thought of her and Finn together.. it made her want to gag. She couldn't believe that just last week she had finally come clean about not sleeping with Jesse. Finn had looked her directly in the eye and lied straight to her face!

At first she tried to stay strong. She dragged Finn with her to couples counselling but that hadn't been helpful at all. If anything it just made Rachel feel more upset when she heard his answers. She had wanted to slap him but Ms. Pillsbury advised against it. After Rachel left she immediately regretted listening to the guidance counselor - she should've slapped him.

* * *

Everyone was piled into the choir room ready to start today's glee club rehearsal. After the previous blow out Jesse hoped that today would be more productive. Boy was he proved wrong.

"Where's Puck? I haven't seen him since yesterday and I need him to get me a churro." Santana commented.

"My guess is he'd rather quit glee club than lose Sectionals and I can't blame him. Our set is gonna be real light on the Mercedes." Mercedes replied.

"I'm telling you, if the Warblers win Sectionals it's only because we gave them Kurt. We should not clap." Jesse rolled his eyes at Tina's remark.

"If we lose at Sectionals we should throw possums." Brittany stated.

Rachel walked into the room with duct tape covering her mouth.

"Rachel, what are you doing?" Mr. Schuester questioned clearly annoyed.

She carefully pulled the tape away so she could speak, "I'm not doing anything. You've silenced my talents, I'm merely protesting." She paused, "My talents are wasted in this club. My star shines too bright and I think you're threatened by it."

Mr. Schuester slammed the sheet music against the piano, "Take that off!" He yelled, "I'm tired of this Rachel. You have a terrible attitude, you're a lousy sport and it is not okay anymore!"

"Well I'm upset! I'm furious about this! About a couple of things actually." She glared at Finn.

"I'm sorry you're disappointed but you know, you could also make the choice to be happy. That we're apart of a glee club that's bursting at the seams with talent."

"More like bursting at the seams with anger." Jesse shot in, everyone looked at him.

"What did you just say?" Mr. Schuester demanded.

"Mr. Schuester, you have no right to talk to Rachel that way." He said sternly, "Actually, you have no right to speak to anyone that way, especially a student."

"Oh snap." Artie whispered.

Mr. Schuester's face was twisted in anger. "I'm the teacher Jesse, you can't tell me what I can or cannot do. I will not take this attitude from you. Go to Figgins' office. Now."

Jesse stood up from his seat and marched out of the room. In the hallway he found Puck and Lauren walking together. "Hey man, they're looking for you at glee club."

"We're heading there now.." Puck told him, "Wait, why aren't you there?"

"Mr. Schuester sent me to Figgin's office."

"Why?"

"He was being an ass to Rachel and I called him out on it." Jesse said with a shrug, "Artie will fill you in on the details."

Puck nodded, "Good luck with Figgins."

"Yeah, thanks." Jesse said before leaving the other teenagers alone.

* * *

_"Don't cry for me Argentina, the truth is I never left you, all through my wild days_  
_my mad existance_ _I kept my promise_  
_don't keep your distance."_

Jesse watched Kurt leave the auditorium. He had overhead a conversation between Kurt and Rachel. Kurt needed her help with a solo and Rachel decided to show him how it was done. Jesse had heard her singing when he was walking through the hallway. He wanted to go inside but he had been scared that she would've stopped singing at the sight of him. Instead he waited until she was done helping Kurt. Once she was alone again he wandered inside. "I always knew that you were destined to sing that song."

Rachel was sitting at the piano. Hearing Jesse's voice made Rachel snap to attention. She immediately tried to wipe away the tears that had formed after Kurt left. She couldn't bring herself to speak to him. She knew she'd just start crying again.

Jesse noticed her tear stained cheeks before she could wipe away the evidence. He climbed onto the stage, "Rachel, what's wrong?"

She shut her eyes tightly and looked away from him.

He moved closer to her, "Hey, it's alright. You can talk to me.. You said we were friends, remember?" He carefully lifted her chin so that she'd look at him.

He hated what he saw. Once she opened her eyes he really came to realize how broken she was. All of her spunk and hard working attitude was gone. It was all replaced by a frightened girl who didn't strive for fame but instead only wanted the world to accept her.

Rachel looked up at him. For a few seconds she considered speaking but soon decided against it. She abruptly stood up, "I have to go."

He barely heard her voice but he didn't get in her way. Sighing, Jesse replaced her at the piano and began to play several different melodies that expressed the melancholia he was feeling. All he wanted was for Rachel to feel better. He hated that he couldn't make that happen.

* * *

Sectionals. Jesse wasn't worried but he wasn't excited either. The only thing he knew was that for once in his life he didn't want to perform. Most of the members of New Directions were angry with each other and knowing that they weren't very professional, he didn't feel like taking the chance of having to watch them start fighting on stage in front of the crowded audience. But he was Jesse St. James after all and Jesse St. James didn't back away from a challenge so there he was, sitting in the audience with the rest of his show choir.

The first performance started. The Hipsters. Jesse sighed quietly, he had a good feeling that today was going to be a long day. All he could think about was that if he had still been with Vocal Adrenaline right now they would've all been ripping into the current show choir singing. Suddenly a thought hit him. What if Vocal Adrenaline was here right now. Nervously he glanced around. It was dark. How was he supposed to tell?

His thoughts of Vocal Adrenaline left his mind when the Warblers took the stage. He smiled the entire time, glad to see that Kurt looked happy. Their performance was good but Jesse liked to think that he could've done it better. After giving the Warblers a standing ovation New Directions quickly went back to their green room to get ready for their performance.

Once they got there things started to get bad. Sam was busy trying to comfort Quinn who was freaking out. Mercedes was still complaining over her lack of solos. Artie was confronting Brittany and Tina was upset with Mike. Jesse felt like hitting his head against the wall.

"You told Kurt?" Jesse had just realized that Rachel had been absent from the scene.

"I don't remember, maybe.." Finn replied awkwardly.

"About Finn and Santana? No, I think I told him." Mercedes said flatly.

"Who told you?"

"Me. I think Brittany told me.. Or maybe it was Puck." Quinn stated.

"Yeah it was me." He agreed.

"Everybody knew about this but me?"

"Pretty much. Nobody tells you anything because a) you're a blabber mouth and b) we all just pretend to like you." Santana said.

"That's not true. I kinda like her." Puck admitted.

"Me too." Jesse added.

"Look, Rachel, when this all happened you were dating another guy so you don't really have a right to be pissed at me about it okay? And fine, I shouldn't have lied about it but to be honest that isn't what you care about. You care about the Santana of it all." Finn declared.

"Oh who are you right now?" Rachel's frustration was driving her crazy.

"Best. Green room. Ever." Lauren said to herself.

Rachel continued to speak, "You guys are gonna have to find someone else to mindlessly harmonize in the background because I'm not going on stage with him!"

"Make that two subs. I'm not going out there with Brittany." Artie said.

"Me either." was Tina's response.

"Enough!"

Everyone looked over at Mr. Schuster. He gave them one of his speeches about team work and how he didn't care if they hated each other he just wanted them to go out and sing together. The lights flashed in the green room signalling for their departure.

"Alright. Show time!"

* * *

Coming to school the next day the glee club had a lot to celebrate about yet Rachel couldn't bring herself to do that. Not until she worked things out with Finn.

"When we first started glee club I told Mr. Schuester that being apart of something special makes you special and, I don't know, I think I lost that somewhere along the way but winning that way at Sectionals really reminded me of it." Rachel said as she walked through the halls with Finn.

"Are we apart of something special? You and me?" Finn stopped walking.

"Yes." She replied looking up at him.

"I love you."

Rachel hugged him.

"No more lying. Ever."

Suddenly Rachel was overcome with guilt, "There's um, something I need to tell you. Last week when we were fighting. I was so mad at you and I was so hurt that I wanted to make you feel as bad as I felt."

_Earlier in the week Puck found a sad looking Rachel standing alone in the hallway. Feeling kinda bad for her he decided to offer his company. After being nice to her for a couple days he ended up going to her house. They had been making out in her bedroom for the majority of the visit but suddenly Puck was beginning to regret his decision._

_Puck pulled away from her, ending the kiss._

_"Is something wrong? Did I bite you again?" _

_"I did this to Finn once before, I can't do it again. I'm sorry, I have to go."_

_Rachel mumbled for him to stay. Puck stopped in her doorway._

_"I'm sorry too.." Rachel told him, unsure if he was still going to leave or not, "I shouldn't have tried to put you in this position. I'm just so mad at him."_

_Puck turned to look at her, "You have every right to be mad at him Berry but this isn't the way to deal with it. I know that you chose me because you thought I'd be okay with it. And hell, I won't lie, normally I don't care but after being in Juvie, I want to be a better dude. I miss what I had with Finn but I wouldn't change what I did with Quinn-"_

_"Because you love her?" Rachel cut in softly._

_Puck shifted his weight awkwardly. His eyes wandered from Rachel as he nodded his head in a vulnerable way that Rachel knew not many people got the chance to see._

_He coughed awkwardly, "Anyway," He began, "I came with you today because as a fellow Jew, I wanted to be there for you if you needed to talk. I didn't intend to give in to your plan by making out with you, that just happened because you're hot and it's obvious that I'll never completely change, I'm Puckasaurus Rex after all." He stated with a hint of pride, "Truth is, I had something else in mind when coming here."_

_"What is it?" _

_"Finn isn't the only reason I stopped kissing you." Puck said, "The other reason - no, the main reason is Jesse."_

_Rachel felt a pang in her chest. "Did he send you here?"_

_"Nope."_

_Rachel looked at the floor, "He really hurt me Noah..."_

_Puck leaned against her doorframe, "I know. He's hurting too."_

_"I'm still in love with him."_

_Puck smirked, "I know."_

_Rachel looked appalled by his smirk, "You think this is funny?"_

_"Stupid actually. You're both crazy about each other yet you're content with staying with Finn who we both know doesn't love you like Jesse does." _

_"Yes, because today really shows how content I am with Finn." Rachel retorted sarcastically, "But do you know what? With the exception of this week I have been content with dating Finn."_

_"How?" Puck interrupted loudly, "He treats you like shit."_

_"No he doesn't-" Before she could try to defend Finn, Puck interrupted her again._

_"He does. We both know it." Puck said, "He treats you like shit and you just keep going back to him. St James did one thing wrong and you won't even give him a second chance."_

_"I want to give him another chance but I'm scared." Rachel admitted with a sigh, "Finn does hurt me but I can handle it. I'm able to push it aside. If I give myself to Jesse again and he hurts me I know I'll die. I almost did the first time, there's no way I'll be able to survive it if history repeats itself."_

_"Rachel, if I thought he was going to hurt you again I wouldn't be telling you to go back to him."_

_She nodded slowly._

_"Just think about it." Puck told her, "Talk to him. And if you could get him to stop calling me Noah, that'd be cool too."_

_"But that's your name!" A small smile formed on Rachel's lips, "Besides, I call you Noah and I don't plan on stopping."_

_Puck rolled his eyes, "Fine, it can be a 'thing' for you two but I swear, if it catches on the two of you will have to deal with a very angry Noah Puckerman."_

_"Thank you, Noah." _

_Puck smiled, "You're welcome Berry." He said before finally leaving her room_.

When Rachel told Finn the truth she left out the details about their conversation about Jesse but just by the mentioning of her and Noah making out she knew that the damage was done. "I'm so sorry and it will never ever happen again."

"I knew that you were a lot of things Rachel and I loved you because of and inspite of all of them but I never thought you were mean."

"Saying that I'm sorry and doesn't what you did with Santana kinda cancel this out?"

"We weren't together! I didn't cheat on you! How could you do this to me?"

"It was a mistake! Maybe we should go to another counselling session with Ms Pillsbury."

"Can't have couples counselling if you're not a couple."

"You're breaking up with me?"

"What you did was really bad Rachel. And you knew how sensitive I'd be about this after what happened with Quinn."

"You said you'd never break up with me!" Rachel felt like crying.

"I never thought you'd make me feel like this." Finn said coldly.

"Feel like what?" Rachel spat, "Feel the way you've been making me feel ever since we first got in a relationship? Santana was right. You really are a hypocrite."

"Don't turn this around on me."

"Why shoudn't I? You started this in the first place by sleeping with her."

"We weren't even dating!" Finn repeated. He was yelling now.

"But when we did start dating you lied about it! A relationship needs honesty Finn! I know what I did was wrong, I cheated on you and I'm sorry but at least I had the decency to come clean about it. You have no right to feel better than me in this relationship. You did the same thing, multiple times to Quinn when you dated her. I'm the proof! You cheated on Quinn with me!"

"That was different." Finn tried to say.

"How is that different?" Rachel was so frustrated, "You claimed to be in love with her yet you spent your time leading me on until we finally kissed. God, what is wrong with me? I knew you were a cheater. Why did I even start dating you?" Rachel exclaimed, more to herself than to Finn.

Finn was about to try speaking again but Rachel cut him off, "Don't. It's over. I'm done with you." She said before storming off.

Rachel was tired of everything. She was tired of the lies, the insults, the hate. She just wanted everything to be over. New Directions had placed in Sectionals but she couldn't be happy. Not after everything that had happened with Finn. Every time she saw a member of the glee club she felt herself being pulled into an argument or talked down about.

Every time she saw Santana and Finn together she felt nauseated. She couldn't understand how she had even considered staying with Finn after what he had done. However it did remind her of something. _"Unlike St. Douche, Finn did the smart thing and hooked up with me."_

What did she mean by that? Rachel wanted answers. She decided to take Puck's advice to heart. She needed to go talk to Jesse.

She was glad that school was over for the day. She looked through the many students leaving the school grounds in search of the curly haired boy. Jesse was on his way to his range rover when Rachel caught up to him.

"Were you offered the chance to sleep with Santana?" She questioned dramatically still on a high from her fight with Finn.

"I'm gonna need you to calm down a bit please.." He suggested, caught off guard by her question and sudden appearance.

"Where did it happen?" Rachel didn't pay attention to his previous comment. She felt that if she didn't get closure over everything she might explode.

"At a party." Jesse sighed, "It was right after you turned me down. I went to get drunk, she found me there."

Rachel cringed at the thought of a slutty Santana leading Jesse upstairs in an unfamiliar house. It was like a nightmare. "Why didn't you sleep with her?"

"Do you want the truth?"

"Honesty is all I've ever wanted."

"I couldn't sleep with her because she wasn't you. Don't you get it? You're the one that I want Rachel. Not Santana, not Quinn, there's no other girl out there that makes me feel the way I feel about you."

Rachel sniffed back a few tears, "That was a really good answer." She said softly before rushing into his arms. She pulled him close, tightly hugging his larger body.

Jesse wrapped his arms around her petite frame. He allowed himself to bury his face into her neck, taking in her smell. He breathed deeply. For the first time in a while he felt content. After a moment Jesse pulled away so that his forehead was resting against hers, "Let me drive you home."

"I'd like that." Rachel smiled at him.

"Good." He broke their embrace but kept hold of her hand as he led her to his vehicle.


End file.
